AI’s Gold Rush: OpenText Urges MSPs To Lead the Charge

The AI gold rush is here, and solution providers are standing at the edge of a massive opportunity. That was the message from Michael DePalma, VP of Business Development at OpenText Cybersecurity, during his keynote at XChange NexGen 2025. With AI flooding the market and billions in global investment pouring in, DePalma urged MSPs to move fast but strategically.

“This is a gold rush for the channel,” he said. “We just have to figure out where we fit in it.” Drawing from third-party and internal studies, he emphasized that OpenText’s roadmap is tightly aligned with the evolving needs of SMBs and the channel ecosystem.

DePalma outlined the historical evolution of the channel—from break-fix to MSP 2.0—and posed the critical question: “What is the MSP 3.0?” He pointed to AI as the next transformative wave, but warned of the pitfalls. “An MIT study that came out earlier this year said that 95% of AI projects showed zero return on investment,” he noted. “That’s a huge opportunity for the channel.”

He cautioned that SMBs may be tempted to bypass MSPs, believing AI tools are plug –and play. “Unless there’s an expert in there to educate them on how to implement these and how to maximize the benefits…they’re going to be wasting their time and money.”

DePalma concluded with a call to action: “If I know I need AI and I know I need to work with a managed service provider to do that…that’s how we all grow as a community.”

Learn more at OpenText.