Asset intelligence platform vendor Lansweeper today released the findings of its AI in Managed Services report. The research is based on a survey of 195 North American and European MSPs conducted in December 2024.
“AI adoption is not a nice to have tech innovation – it has become an essential tool for MSPs looking to optimize operations, enhance service offerings, and drive new revenue opportunities,” said Christina Klein the VP of global MSP business at Lansweeper. “This report equips MSPs with the insights they need to translate AI potential into real, measurable advantages.”
AI adoption increasing but remains a challenge for many MSPs
AI is a top priority for many MSPs: 90% of respondents answered that they view AI as either “very important” (63.6%) or “somewhat important” (26.2%) to their growth strategy. With that in mind, it might seem adoption is still slow across the channel. According to the report, several key obstacles keep some MSPs from embracing the new technology.
The report highlights key challenges including:
- Data Quality & Integration: AI only works as well as the data feeding it does, and many providers are still getting their data ready for AI implementation. In fact, 93.3% of MSPs rated this concern as “very significant” (61.5%) or “somewhat significant” (31.8%).
- Implementation Complexity: MSPs are finding it difficult to integrate new AI technology with legacy systems, applications, and ways of working
- Security: Risks like breaches, biases, and other data concerns remain top of mind for many MSPs
- Lack of skilled talent: While IT hiring is already difficult in many industries, some AI technology is so new that the talent pool is small and unattainable for those unable to pay for top talent
- Upfront Costs: Especially for smaller organizations, the price of adding AI to the tech stack makes it difficult to fully join the adoption journey
- Ethical Considerations: The research highlights that some providers are struggling to understand if AI usage should be disclosed and how these new tools comply with various regulatory frameworks
Automation fuels operational efficiencies and revenue
Even with the challenges noted above, many MSPs are seeing substantial improvements to their efficiency by implementing AI across workflows and tasks.
“The key processes that MSPs are currently automating the most are IT monitoring (66.7%) and ticketing and incident management (54.4%),” the report reads. Lansweeper also cites research that asserts MSPs who embrace AI see an up to 20% increase in efficiency, coupled with higher overall customer satisfaction scores.
Outside of simply speeding up routine tasks and labor-intensive workloads, many MSPs are expecting AI services to contribute significantly to future revenue growth.
76.4% of respondents believing that AI-driven services will contribute between 11 and 50% of their revenue in the next years. European partners are a bit more bullish than their North American counterparts: 51.0% of them are expecting a “significant positive impact,” versus 35.5% in North America.
The top three new revenue streams partners surveyed identified include:
- AI-powered cybersecurity (56.4%)
- Automated client support solutions (55.4%)
- Predictive analytics (51.3%)
The potential for AI to drive value for MSPs carries directly through to how the technology will help end-user clients, including global SMBs. In our February interview, the founder and CEO of a new MSP focused on enabling SMBs through AI pointed out how much this year will impact overall AI adoption in the future.
“There’s a risk here that SMBs just won’t do anything with AI and totally miss out,” Critchley said. “We need to show them small use cases to start and prove value in one process automation or one departmental goal. Then, they’ll come back to us and say, ‘oh, what if we also did that over here in this department or tried this other product out, too,’ and they’ll start to understand.”
Data, security, and ROI: channel themes become apparent in 2025
Lansweeper’s recent research highlights many of the same trends Channel Insider has covered for months. As MSPs, and their customers, begin to significantly expand their AI adoption strategies, concerns over data and security remain a key contributor to hesitation and delay.
“Organizations are either overly terrified or overly hyped about implementing AI. The reality is somewhere in between,” said Rob Fitzgerald, Field CISO at Blue Mantis, in an October interview with us. “Proper AI implementation requires careful consideration, preparation, and time.”
Because some early adopters of AI are already showing results, it might not seem there is any reason to question the value of implementation plans. However, MSPs who jump in head-first without a strategy in place to measure ROI might find themselves quickly debating the financial impacts.
The AI technology race continues to speed forward. Learn more about how Accrete is taking its AI to enterprise customers through channel partnerships.