GenAI: Partners still in exploration mode, despite vendor hype

While interest in generative AI remains high, the majority of partner firms are still exploring potential use cases, TCC research has found

Amid the very public fire-and-rehire of OpenAI CEO Sam Altman, generative AI has arguably gained even more of a spotlight than it already had this year.

GenAI is now one of the most commonly used terms in the IT industry.

The topic of AI in general continues to create buzz and boost tech valuations in an otherwise difficult year for the sector.

Mentions of AI in financial earning calls have increased two-fold in Q1 and Q2 this year and nascent AI start-ups are getting record financing and valuations.

In February, arguably at the peak of the generative AI hype, channel partners expressed varying degrees of excitement about the potential of ChatGPT for everything from solving the talent war to AI marketing content but expressed some caution around a tool still in beta at the time.

Nine months later, some of the largest technology vendors, from Microsoft and Google to, most recently, Zoom, have touted AI as a growth driver in their quarterly results and reaffirmed commitments to driving GenAI adoption through the channel.

Read on to discover how channel partners are implementing AI technology into their marketing and offerings...

Adoption in the early stages

But even among channel partners there are vastly different assessments of the impact of this technology and the speed at which it will be adopted.

Some call it "revolutionary" and as big of a change as the emergence of internet while others see no use cases at all for their businesses.

Despite all this, in-house adoption among channel companies is still in the very early stages. A recent analysis by CRN parent The Channel Company found that, although 48 per cent of partners express curiosity, only five per cent have integrated generative AI into their business or offering.

Established players like Microsoft and AWS dominate partner preferences, reflecting trust in familiar names.

Despite the potential, the nascent nature of the technology, as well as sometimes unsubstantiated hype and lack of robust use cases coupled with security concerns hinder progress.

The analysis suggests a gap between interest and implementation.

Partners, especially managed service providers (MSPs) and value-added resellers (VARs), are at an exploratory stage, creating a fertile ground for expert guidance.

The research focused on a sample of 126,000 IT channel companies, largely based in the US.

The original number was reduced to 55,000 by removing all records that did not mention AI-related topics on their websites and then further narrowed down to 11,242 companies skilled in at least one AI-related specialisation.

Early adopters reference general AI, machine learning

Only 13.3 per cent of companies explicitly reference GenAI, suggesting a relatively low level of uptake thus far.

43.7 per cent of AI capable IT channel partners describe AI using general terms, rather than going into any specialisation.

Meanwhile, 36.7 per cent of partners have a significant amount of machine learning-related terminology on their websites.

20.8 per cent broadly describe natural language processing, 24.6 per cent write about deep learning and 26.6 per cent have significant presence of robotics-related terminology.

Use cases

Efficiency by far outweighed other potential use cases, according to the research.

The findings reveal that 54 per cent of the respondents believe that GenAI and large language models (LLMs) could have a considerable and moderate impact on enhancing the efficiency of processes within their business segment.

Conversely, 17 per cent think that the impact on efficiency could be significant, high, or very high.

While interest in the technology is high, the majority of partners are still in the exploratory stage and some have even suggested they do not see any potential use of this technology in their businesses.