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In this update, we’ll kick things off with the biggest stories in AI and partnerships, starting with OpenAI’s massive tie-up with Amazon, then Microsoft’s key infrastructure plays, and more. These moves highlight how tech giants are doubling down on compute power and ecosystems to fuel the next wave of AI innovation.

So, without further ado, let’s dive in.

OpenAI and Amazon's Strategic Partnership

OpenAI has teamed up with AWS in a multi-year partnership valued at $38 billion, giving the AI leader access to vast cloud resources and hundreds of thousands of Nvidia GPUs. This setup lets OpenAI scale its models and workloads efficiently, while tapping into AWS tools for faster development and deployment. Deals like this are about building resilient ecosystems where AI can thrive without bottlenecks. I’ve seen similar collaborations unlock new GTM opportunities, and this one feels like a smart pivot for OpenAI to diversify its infrastructure bets, potentially speeding up agent capabilities for enterprise users. It’s exciting to think how this could reshape partner strategies, making AI more accessible for SaaS teams. You can read my post on this here.

AWS announced new benefits for AWS Managed Services Provider (MSP) Partners

The update adds three program levers, MSP Incentive for Customer Management, MSP Incentive for Strategic Services, and an MSP Government Practice Benefit. The aim is to help MSPs scale practices in generative AI, security, and modernization, with enablement sessions and updated guidance in Partner Central.
This is a margin and mix reset for MSPs. The incentives reward partners that manage the full customer lifecycle, expand into strategic services, and build a public sector lane. Treat this as permission to productize outcomes, not hours. Expect more AWS field motion and marketing to prioritize validated MSPs that can prove ongoing value, especially in AI operations and public sector. We’ve seen Google Cloud expand partner incentives just this past week (see my previous Weekly Rundown for details). Program dollars will increasingly flow to partners who can show governed AI in production, consistent security posture, and geo-fit deployments. If you are still selling projects without managed services, you will be deprioritized.

A 3-Way Partnership Fueling Cybersecurity Innovation Worldwide: The Expanded CrowdStrike Accelerator Program

CrowdStrike, AWS, and NVIDIA have expanded their Cybersecurity Startup Accelerator globally, aiming to fast-track innovation in AI-driven cloud security. Now in its third year, this accelerator connects early-stage startups with mentorship, funding, and go-to-market support from industry leaders, helping them scale faster and gain priority access to global ecosystems.

Startups benefit from hands-on guidance, technical resources, and exposure to top investors, culminating in a Demo Day aligned with RSA Conference. Previous cohorts have collectively raised over $730 million in funding and seen successful acquisitions, proving the program’s impact.

For partners and startups alike, this expansion signals a growing focus on agentic AI and cloud security innovation, with backing from major players to drive transformative solutions. Joining this ecosystem means tapping into cutting-edge infrastructure, expert support, and a powerful network designed to accelerate growth and competitiveness in a rapidly evolving market.

Google Cloud, Infrastructure that Partners Can Monetize

Google Cloud announced their new Ironwood TPUs and Axion VMs, designed to accelerate the shift toward AI-powered applications at scale. They are purpose-built for demanding AI workloads, delivering significant performance boosts and energy efficiency improvements. Google had previously developed AI chips primarily for its own services, such as Google Cloud. It was also the largest customer of NVIDIA, purchasing chips in bulk and then leasing them to Google Cloud customers. However, as the AI chip market expands and dependency on NVIDIA grows, Google now aims to monetize its Tensor Processing Units (TPUs) by increasing supply to external customers. 'Google’s targets are mainly new cloud providers heavily dependent on NVIDIA chips’ , according to media reports. there is direct competition on AI hardware, but Google’s Ironwood and Axion products coexist with NVIDIA’s portfolio, often targeting different usage models, cloud environments, and customer needs.

Partners gain access to enhanced orchestration and tooling that accelerate development and time to market. This empowers SaaS companies to differentiate with solutions that outperform competitors on less optimized infrastructure. Additionally, the broad Google Cloud partner ecosystem, combined with co-selling and marketing support, provides SaaS vendors with expanded GTM, channels, and revenue opportunities. Overall, these advancements enable partners to scale AI services efficiently and meet the rising enterprise demand for AI-driven business outcomes.

New Opportunities for NVIDIA Partners: Driving Smart City Innovations with Physical AI

NVIDIA highlighted partners delivering smart-city and industrial safety solutions at Smart City Expo. Team with local SIs, telcos, and robotics ISVs, sell outcomes like incident reduction and throughput gains, include a 12-week install plan and one KPI customers can defend in budget reviews.

This latest physical AI push shows real deployments partners can productize now. NVIDIA’s partners are already using them in multiple cities for traffic flow, public safety, and operations. Partners can package outcome-based offers with local SIs and city agencies, anchor on one KPI like incident reduction or throughput, include data policy and governance, and price as pilot plus managed run.

Here’s a list of Nvidia’s partners for physical AI and an explanation of what physical AI is.

How Cisco’s AI Push Shapes Partner Growth and Opportunity

Cisco’s Partner Summit highlighted that the AI era presents is an opportunity that calls for close collaboration and innovation from its partner ecosystem. With AI transforming infrastructure, security, and customer experience, Cisco’s deep integration of networking and security, combined with AI-native tools, uniquely positions partners to deliver differentiated value.

For Cisco partners, this means rising to the challenge of selling and supporting solutions that are evolving faster than ever, often addressing problems customers didn’t know they had just months ago. The pace of AI innovation is accelerating, and partners must stay agile, continuously learn to capture new revenue streams. The focus on AI-ready data centers, resilient infrastructure, and secure collaboration gives partners clear areas to deepen expertise and expand offerings. The program investments set the stage for partners to become indispensable AI-era advisors, delivering integrated, secure, and intelligent solutions that enterprises demand. Those who embrace this shift quickly and strategically will be best positioned to thrive in a rapidly changing market.

Microsoft and Lambda Partner for AI Infrastructure Push

Lambda revealed a multibillion-dollar, multi-year pact with Microsoft to roll out critical AI setups, powered by tens of thousands of Nvidia GPUs. The focus is on delivering high-performance compute for Microsoft’s growing AI demands, with Lambda handling deployment and optimization.

This underscores Microsoft’s aggressive stance in the AI race, leaning on startups like Lambda to ramp up capacity quickly. I remember advising on ecosystem builds where such partnerships turned into revenue multipliers, and here, it could enhance Azure’s edge in agent tech and partner programs. It’s a reminder for GTM leaders to watch how these tie-ups evolve into co-sell opportunities, blending cloud scale with specialized AI expertise.

Smartsheet’s Partner Program Revamp and Expanded AWS Partnership

Smartsheet just elevated its Aligned Partner Program with major enhancements designed to boost partner profitability and global reach. The program introduces new incentives, a global partner badge, an upgraded ISV track to deepen collaboration, and a quoting tool that speeds deal cycles. Partners also gain access to Gainsight insights for better customer success management. Smartsheet aims to enable partners to drive customer adoption, renewals and retention. It’s giving partners access to customer data in Smartsheet’s Gainsight system. Partners with a Customer Success Manager certification will qualify for this benefit.

Smartsheet has been partnering with AWS for years, and entered its marketplace last year. CRN first reported that Smartsheet and AWS have kicked off a coordinated co-selling program covering several regions where both companies’ sales teams will now work side-by-side to bring Smartsheet solutions to more customers.

For partners, this represents a significant opportunity to deepen their footprint with enterprise clients by offering faster, more integrated solutions that combine people, data, and AI. I find particularly interesting the roll out of a co-selling program with AWS with coverage in multiple regions, which I believe will drive signification acceleration.

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