Podcast: Business of Tech

Each day, the flood of technology news hits. In an industry that always changes, those who deliver technology services need to focus on the information that matters to them. The Business of Tech podcast focuses on the news you need to know. Covering both the story and why it matters to the way services are created and delivered, channel veteran Dave Sobel brings you up to speed and gives you resources to go deeper. With insights and analysis, this five minute podcast focuses on the knowledge you need to be effective, profitable, and relevant.

Readiness vs Reliability: Most AI Gains in MSPs Absorbed by Existing Workloads

The core structural shift highlighted is the disconnect between service reliability gains from AI automation and readiness for strategic change among IT service providers and their clients. Reports from SolarWinds, Corsica Technologies, and Deloitte reveal that AI is delivering measurable productivity benefits, but those time savings are consumed by ongoing reliability work rather than being…

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ThreatCaptain Gen 4 Unbundles Pricing: Brad Powell Explains Impact for MSP Growth Strategies

The core structural shift addressed in this episode centers on the unbundling and modularization of vendor platforms in the MSP technology market. This shift is exemplified by ThreatCaptain’s launch of its Gen 4 product, which transitions from an all-encompassing platform to discrete modules aligned to specific MSP business challenges—lead generation, sales enablement, and ROI/risk analytics….

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Ben Morrell on How Unified Security Platforms Shift MSP Operational Risk and Staff Needs

The episode highlights the structural shift toward platform consolidation in security services, illustrated by Coro’s unified security platform and its positioning for lean IT teams and MSPs. The mechanism involves the bundling of diverse security tools—email protection, endpoint detection and response (EDR), DLP, security awareness, backup, and cloud app integrations—into a single, managed service. This…

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Vendor Tiering Locks Out Small Partners: Anurag Agrawal on Allocation, Not Capability

The episode identifies a structural shift within the IT services market, highlighting a bifurcation between two distinct economic models in the channel: the advisory economy, paid upfront for transformation and integration, and the operational economy, paid on the backend for managed outcomes and recurring support. Techaisle’s 2026 Global Channel Partners Survey, referenced by Anurag Agrawal,…

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AI Watermarks and the End of Document Trust

The dominant structural shift explored is the erosion of document-based differentiation for MSPs and IT service providers, driven by advances in generative AI, regulatory mandates, and automation of AI detection and content creation processes. Regulatory requirements such as the EU AI Act are compelling vendors like Anthropic and Google to introduce invisible watermarks on machine-generated…

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AI-Driven Vulnerabilities and Bonded Licenses: Why Permission Is the Hidden Business Risk

The episode reveals a structural shift toward permission-based operational models, where access and capability are not determined by technical proficiency alone but by explicit, revocable permissions from state or corporate authorities. This model is illustrated by the recent U.S. federal initiative authorizing select private cybersecurity firms to conduct offensive operations against foreign criminal organizations—an approach…

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ConnectWise CEO Manny Rivelo: AI Agents Shift Ticket Resolution and Labor Costs for MSPs

The episode details a structural shift within the managed services market toward increased operational automation and integration, framed by vendor-led consolidation of core service platforms with embedded AI-driven workflows. ConnectWise has combined previously separate systems—PSA, RMM, ScreenConnect, and others—into a unified platform powered by agent-based automation (“agentic AI”) under the “Predictive IT” model. The associated…

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Automation’s Cost Curve: Why AI Usage Is Squeezing Profits Across IT Services

Margin pressure driven by AI adoption and automation is fundamentally altering the economic model for IT service delivery and software. Trend Micro’s disclosure that operating margins fell from 19% to 15% while cloud and AI token costs nearly doubled, despite strong AI security product sales, highlights how AI-related expenses grow in step with usage. This…

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Lexful’s AI-Native Documentation: New Accountability and Risk for MSPs – With Pinar Ormeci

The episode highlights the shift toward AI-driven knowledge management within the MSP sector, revealing increased operational dependency on structured data and sophisticated integrations. Lexful, an AI-native documentation platform designed specifically for MSPs, represents this trend by positioning itself not as a simple add-on but as a replacement for legacy documentation tools—controlling critical record-keeping functions and…

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N-able’s Security Revenue Faces Decline as License Portability Undercuts MSP Margins

The episode details a structural shift for MSPs and IT service providers: the separation of security license resale from the value of human-led security services, and the resulting pricing and margin risks. Companies like N-able, SentinelOne, and SonicWall exemplify how technology offerings and delivery mechanisms are forcing providers to re-examine what differentiates their services beyond…

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