AI is permeating essentially all aspects of technology and business, so it should come as no surprise that the emerging technology is a central point of discussion when talking about cybersecurity.
In its
recent annual security report, crowd-sourced security platform provider
HackerOne outlined a
rapidly expanding AI arms race between threat groups that are using the technology to improve their cyberthreat efforts and the defenders infusing their offerings and processes to protect customers against attacks of all kinds, including those powered by AI.
Similarly, MSSPs and MSPs that include managed security services in their offerings are also armpit-deep in the AI discussion, often for many of the same reasons as corporate security teams. They’re no longer just helping organizations with products, monitoring, and alerting.
“MSSPs have evolved into proactive, intelligent cyber defense partners,”
Cloud4c, which offers managed cloud services for enterprises, wrote in a
blog post earlier this year. “By combining artificial intelligence, process automation, telemetry intelligence, and deep security expertise, they offer continuous, end-to-end protection from core to endpoints that keeps pace with the complexity of modern digital operations.”
'A Critical Moment'
A recent survey by AI software company
OpenText put the role of AI in the MSP community into clearer focus in a recent report. The rise in AI adoption and demand is creating what
Michael DePalma, vice president of SMB business development for OpenText Cybersecurity, called a “critical moment for MSPs.”
“In 2025, the industry is no longer wondering if AI will transform cybersecurity and service delivery,” DePalma
wrote in a blog post. “It is asking how fast providers can evolve to meet the moment. While MSPs are under immense pressure, they also face unprecedented potential. AI is accelerating everything, from customer expectations to internal operations. But the foundational question remains: are MSPs equipped to scale with this demand?”
What the survey of more than 1,000 MSPs found was that AI is driving tremendous business growth – a trend that promises to continue through at least the end of this year – which is good news for MSPs and their MSSP brethren. However, they’re finding it increasingly difficult to keep up with client demands around the technology.
AI at the Center
The survey also took up other issues, such as the continuing push for highly integrated, package security services resulting from the tool fatigue many MSPs are suffering, the evolving demands of customers, and the expectations that the service providers will offer even more services in the next year. However, AI was front and center.
OpenText found that 92% of MSPs surveyed said that AI is already driving business growth, and 96% predict that growth will continue through this year.
'Momentum is Outpacing Readiness'
“But that momentum is outpacing readiness,” DePalma wrote. "Fewer than half of surveyed MSPs feel fully confident guiding customers on AI tools, particularly autonomous agents, where the gap between hype and hands-on deployment is widening. This readiness gap is especially stark when compared to last year’s findings.”
In 2024, 90% of survey respondents felt prepared to support AI-related security needs, while that percentage this year dropped to less than half.
“The signal is clear: the AI surge is real, and MSPs are moving from talking about AI to operationalizing it – fast,” he wrote.
That will be important, given the growing importance SMBs are placing on AI. In the survey, AI expertise came in as the third most important attribute SMBs want in an MSP, behind threat prevention and 24/7 support.
Using AI Internally
Service providers are accelerating their efforts to implement AI for internal operations, the survey found. That includes 67% of respondents who say they are
using the technology for customer support and 66% for technical support. In addition, 58% said AI is being used for threat detection, 44% for onboarding, and 42% for sales and marketing.
Now coming on the scene are AI agents, small pieces of software that can autonomously work through complex problems with little if any human intervention. About half of MSPs surveyed said they have developed and deployed cybersecurity AI agents for SMB customers, while 36% said they are experimenting internally with agents but have yet to roll them out to clients.
Look to Microsoft Copilot
A key driver in accelerating momentum behind AI is Microsoft’s Copilot AI technology.
“A combined 95% of MSPs report that their customers are either exploring or actively adopting it,” DePalma wrote. “For MSPs, Copilot represents more than a tool. It is a catalyst. From reducing manual workflows to accelerating decision-making, it is reshaping how SMBs think about productivity and security. MSPs that can build scalable, repeatable services around Copilot will be the ones best positioned to turn AI curiosity into long-term revenue.”
