The Buzz: HPE expands channel software push, AvePoint highlights AI governance gap, and ESET tracks cyber insurance influence

Welcome to The Buzz from ChannelBuzz.ca, I’m Robert Dutt, today is Thursday, April 23, 2026, and here’s what’s happening in the channel today.

Hewlett Packard Enterprise is doubling its dedicated sales team to drive its Hybrid CloudOps software portfolio through the channel. According to Rocco Lavista, vice president and general manager of worldwide Hybrid CloudOps software sales at HPE, the vendor is actively working to accelerate partner attach rates for its software suite. Lavista recently noted that rising global memory prices and the resulting hardware cost pressures are actively driving demand for virtualization alternatives like VM Essentials. For Canadian MSPs and VARs grappling with supply chain volatility and tightening server margins, the vendor’s expanded software push offers a potential pivot point to maintain profitability through higher-margin recurring revenue streams.

AvePoint and Omdia have released new global research indicating that governance and compliance, rather than technical capability, represent the primary barrier to AI monetization for managed service providers. Based on a survey of over three hundred MSPs, fifty-one percent cited governance as the main obstacle to customer AI adoption. The report highlights a significant execution gap: while ninety-four percent of respondents are committed to AI readiness, only forty-three percent report high maturity in their actual service delivery. As Canadian solution providers face increasing data sovereignty and privacy requirements, the research suggests that packaging AI governance as a distinct, standalone service may be the most viable path to capturing a share of a market Omdia projects will reach two hundred and seventy-six billion dollars by 2030.

Security vendor ESET has published its 2026 SMB Cyber Readiness Index, highlighting the growing influence of cyber insurance underwriters on the managed services landscape. The report found that seventy-eight percent of Canadian small and medium-sized businesses now carry cyber insurance, with underwriters increasingly mandating specific security controls as a condition of coverage. Among Canadian SMBs that outsource their security, twenty-seven percent are now bypassing traditional providers to use a cyber insurer offering Managed Detection and Response services, while thirty-eight percent remain with a traditional MSP. For the Canadian channel, the data underscores a critical shift: insurers are actively setting the security baseline, and MSPs must integrate advanced monitoring capabilities to prevent clients from migrating to insurer-provided solutions.

Later today on In The Channel, my conversation with Eric Arcese, vice president of global partner marketing at Dell Technologies, discussing the AI Factory, VxRail’s evolution, and what’s ahead.

And if you haven’t heard it yet, be sure to check out yesterday’s chat with Rewst founder Aharon Chernin on building the automated MSP.

That’s how we’re seeing the headlines today. I’m Robert Dutt for ChannelBuzz.ca, thanks for listening.