Pax8 unveils AI toolkit to help MSPs guide SMB automation shift
Pax8 has announced plans to introduce a Managed Intelligence Toolkit intended to help managed service providers (MSPs) deliver artificial intelligence (AI)-powered solutions to small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs).
The Managed Intelligence Toolkit has been designed as a unified environment for MSPs, enabling them to orchestrate, scale, and manage agentic automation across their portfolio of SMB clients. Central to this development is the integration of technologies from Microsoft, including Copilot Studio, Azure AI Foundry, and Entra Agent ID, into the Pax8 Marketplace and its commerce infrastructure.
One of the stated aims of this offering is to support MSPs in transitioning from a traditional infrastructure management model towards what Pax8 is referring to as Managed Intelligence Providers (MIPs), with a focus on overseeing automation and AI processes, known as agentic automation, at scale.
By incorporating Model Context Protocol (MCP) into the Pax8 Marketplace APIs and catalogue, Pax8 expects that Microsoft Copilots and AI agents will be able to interact directly with the marketplace, facilitating autonomous service discovery and procurement for MSPs and their clients. The initial integrations are expected to begin rolling out later in 2025, with full availability of the toolkit targeted for release in 2026.
Pax8 has confirmed that its toolkit will allow agents to search, procure, and orchestrate services autonomously in real time, a development they believe will enable MSPs to act as more strategic advisors to SMB clients.
"MSPs are no longer just managing infrastructure—they're managing intelligence," said Scott Chasin, CEO at Pax8. "Our platform development utilising the latest Microsoft AI solutions will unlock a future where SMBs can scale through digital labor, and MSPs become the architects of that transformation."
Marketplace features
Among the features that will be available to MSPs via the Pax8 Marketplace are verticalised agent templates and curated solution bundles for deployment using Microsoft Copilot Studio. This is intended to allow partners to build and customise domain-specific agents targeted at particular customer needs. In addition, the use of Microsoft Entra Agent ID aims to provide agents deployed through Pax8 with unique and scoped identities, supporting more granular control and policy management across client environments.
New initiatives
To facilitate the adoption of AI-powered agents and support MSPs in this transition, Pax8 is also planning several companion initiatives. These include the launch of more than 30 "Guided Growth Journeys", described as structured enablement paths assisting MSPs and their clients in rolling out Microsoft-based agents across areas such as sales, finance, customer support, operations, and compliance.
Looking ahead to 2026, Pax8 is planning the launch of the Pax8 Agent Marketplace, which is designed to provide a comprehensive marketplace for both horizontal and vertical AI agents based on Copilot Studio and Azure AI Foundry. In addition, the company is developing the Transformation Academy, a set of technical and business training programmes aimed at providing guidance for partners on how to build, price, and manage agentic services.
"Small and medium-sized businesses are the backbone of the global economy, and their ability to adopt AI solutions will define the next wave of innovation," said Allison West Hughes, CVP Global SMB at Microsoft. "We're excited to see new platforms, such as Pax8's initiative that further aims to empower SMB's to achieve more."
Release timeline
The first set of integrations—encompassing Copilot Studio, MCP, and Entra Agent ID—will begin rolling out during 2025, with full commercial availability planned for later that year. The comprehensive Managed Intelligence Toolkit is expected to be released in phased previews commencing in Q2 2026.
