Every MSP owner knows the traditional growth formula: win more customers, add more endpoints, generate more tickets and hire more technicians. For years, that approach fueled managed services industry growth. But as labor costs rise and skilled talent becomes harder to find, many MSPs are discovering that scaling a business by endlessly adding people is unsustainable.
Now, the industry has reached an inflection point, according to ConnectWise CEO Manny Rivelo. “The equation for growth is breaking. It is human-led, and there’s nothing wrong with that, but the market is shifting.”
That belief is driving ConnectWise’s predictive intelligence platform. The initiative, announced during the Pax8 Beyond 2026 conference, is part of a broader vision to help MSPs use AI and automation to scale operations without relying exclusively on additional staff.
ConnectWise partners may recognize the underlying technology. The company has retired its Asio brand in favor of the simpler ConnectWise Platform, Rivelo told ChannelPro in an interview. The change reflects its shift from building the foundation to crafting intelligence on top of it.
Manny Rivelo
In practical terms, ConnectWise is betting that AI agents can eventually handle many of the repetitive tasks that consume technician time. This would allow MSPs to support more customers without adding headcount. The company’s long-term goal is what it calls “Predictive IT,” the systems identify and resolve issues before users ever notice them.
From reactive support to Predictive IT
The ConnectWise Platform combines management, security and automation capabilities with AI agents designed to handle more operational work on behalf of MSPs. The idea is that service providers can shift from reacting to problems to preventing them.
Today, most MSPs operate on a reactive model. A user can’t log in, can’t print or experiences a security issue. The MSP then reacts by opening a ticket, a technician investigates the problem and resolves it.
ConnectWise’s predictive intelligence platform automates portions of that workflow. The company’s five-stage framework begins with basic AI assistance. It then progresses toward autonomous agents that can analyze data, make decisions and execute routine tasks.
With this Predictive IT strategy, systems identify potential issues and resolve them before the customer is even aware of a problem, Rivelo explained. “I see the problem, open the ticket, solve the ticket, close the ticket and eventually let you know that you had an incident last night. Then, it’s ‘Don’t worry, we took care of it for you.'”
More than just an update to its existing platform, ConnectWise’s strategy represents a true shift for MSP operations, according to Rick Harber, founder and CEO of Atlanta-based Decision Digital.
Rick Harber
“The workflow engine alone has profoundly changed how we operate,” Harber said in a prepared statement. “We’ve tied real efficiency gains and measurable revenue recovery directly to it — automating dispatch, ticket triage, rote tasks and real process improvement— things that used to eat our team alive. That’s not a pilot program. That’s production.”
Customer zero
ConnectWise isn’t presenting its AI vision as a future possibility. The company has already applied many of the same principles within its own operations, Rivelo confirmed.
For example, when Rivelo stepped in as CEO, Connectwise was preparing to increase headcount in its managed security services business to keep pace with growth. “The budget request was about 200 individuals that we wanted to hire,” Rivelo recalled.
Instead of hiring more people, the company built an agentic framework to automate much of its level 1 and level 2 security operations work. That improved its SecOps service-level agreement from one hour to 15 minutes, he said.
The experience shaped the company’s broader vision for MSPs. Rather than using AI simply to reduce costs, Rivelo said the goal is to free technical staff to focus on customer outcomes, business growth and strategic initiatives.
Not every MSP is ready
ConnectWise’s experience suggests that AI can improve efficiency and service delivery. Yet Rivelo cautioned that many MSPs still need to address foundational process issues before they can benefit from more advanced AI capabilities.
ConnectWise introduced its Predictive IT strategy at Pax8 Beyond.
MSPs with inconsistent ticketing practices, incomplete documentation or weak operational discipline will struggle to generate meaningful results from AI. That’s because the systems have trouble learning from unreliable data. “If you don’t have those things, AI can’t help you because it needs to be trained,” Rivelo noted.
In some cases, ConnectWise has declined to move forward with some MSPs until those foundational issues are addressed. “We look at partners, ingest their information and if it isn’t right, we say, ‘You’re not a good fit. You need to go do these things. You’re at phase zero.'”
Rivelo’s assessment echoes a growing realization across the channel: AI success depends as much on operational maturity as it does on technology. “There is a cultural process,” Rivelo said. “It’s the old adage of people, process, technology.”
AI changes jobs. It doesn’t eliminate them.
One question MSPs are increasingly grappling with is what happens to technician roles as AI takes on more operational work. Rivelo rejected the idea that automation means fewer opportunities for technical staff. Instead, AI can help technicians become more productive and focus on higher-value work, he said.
ConnectWise’s use of “shadow mode” allows technicians to see how AI would resolve an issue before the system is authorized to act independently. Over time, that can become a training tool as much as an automation tool. “You could take your tier 1 and they could appear to be tier 3,” he noted.
That philosophy also shaped ConnectWise’s own approach. Rather than eliminating jobs, Rivelo said the company redirected resources toward other priorities as automation took over routine SecOps tasks.
For MSPs facing ongoing talent shortages, the appeal may be less about replacing workers and more about enabling existing staff to take on more strategic responsibilities and accelerate their professional development.
The new equation for growth
Whether MSPs embrace ConnectWise’s vision remains to be seen. However, the conversation should begin with operational readiness rather than technology selection.
MSPs first need standardized processes, reliable documentation and quality data. Only then can AI agents deliver meaningful results. “You need to understand the end state. Then you have to understand your current state,” Rivelo emphasized.
For ConnectWise, predictive intelligence is ultimately about changing how MSPs scale. The old formula relied on adding people. The next one may depend on how efficiently providers can turn routine work over to automation.
Anjali Fluker is managing editor of The ChannelPro Network, where she covers news, trends, and best practices for the MSP community. She specializes in telling the stories that matter to IT providers serving the SMB market. When she’s not reporting on the latest in managed services, she’s connecting with channel pros at industry events across the country.
Images: Dall-E; Anjali Fluker/ChannelPro
