From generative AI to agentic AI: The US$276 billion partner opportunity

From generative AI to agentic AI, the landscape of artificial intelligence is rapidly shifting, and vendors and partners are adapting their strategies to capitalize on this evolution. Omdia predicts the global partner opportunity for AI and agentic AI services will reach US$267 billion by 2030, emphasizing the crucial role partners play in successful AI adoption and implementation.

AI is evolving. We have moved quickly from generative AI and productivity tools to intelligent agents that can act independently and carry out complex workflows. This evolution is changing how software functions, how businesses operate, and how value is created across ecosystems. 

• Microsoft has embedded Copilot across its entire ecosystem. 

• Salesforce has reframed Einstein as a platform for building thousands of enterprise agents. 

• Google has integrated Gemini throughout its Workspace applications. 

• ServiceNow has positioned itself as the AI-powered operating system for enterprise workflows. 

This realignment reflects executive priorities, with 90% of executives planning to increase AI-related investments in the coming year, according to Omdia’s AI Market Maturity Survey 2025.

But there is a catch. The majority of AI pilots fail, often because customers lack the data readiness, technical skills, expertise, or governance frameworks to scale AI projects.   

The 2025 Omdia AI Market Maturity survey reveals the top five barriers to AI adoption include:

• Lack of qualified in-house expertise

• Data privacy concerns

• Data quality issues

• Compliance and regulatory challenges

• Integration difficulties with legacy systems

That is where partners come in.  

According to Omdia, the global partner opportunity for AI services is forecast to reach US$267 billion by 2030, with agentic AI commanding a significant portion of that value.

The critical role of partners

Partners are becoming essential to helping customers adopt and implement AI, providing a range of services from strategy and advisory to custom builds:

The partner ecosystem for AI is diverse, with opportunity sizes varying by partner type. GSIs, RSIs, consultants, MSPs/MSSPs, and ISVs represent the largest opportunities, while boutique firms and emerging tech providers are the fast-growing categories fueled by deep specialization.

Seizing the opportunity 

Agentic AI is evolving as a primarily partner-delivered service, with 47% of customers turning to partners and experts for implementation, according to Canalys (now part of Omdia) research. 

As AI continues to rapidly evolve, it is clear that organizations need help bridging expertise and talent gaps to ensure successful implementation and adoption.

Partners that develop specialized data and AI expertise, industry-specific solutions, and end-to-end implementation capabilities will be best-positioned to capture the highest value of this growing market.

Those who invest now in developing the skills and offerings will establish themselves as leaders in this next wave of digital transformation. 

To explore the full analysis, including detailed breakdowns of:

• The evolution from generative to agentic AI 

• Vendor strategies and market positioning 

• The critical role of partners in successful implementation and adoption 

• Detailed opportunity analysis across partner types 

• Breakdown of major vendors’ AI partner strategies 

• Essential capabilities for capturing market share

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