INDUSTRY VIEW
2026 WILL REDEFINE POWER, PERFORMANCE AND PARTNERSHIPS IN THE MIDDLE EAST CHANNEL
ABDUL REHMAN TARIQ BUTT, MIDDLE EAST REGIONAL DIRECTOR AT SOLARWINDS
The Middle East channel ecosystem is undergoing a major transformation as AI adoption, shifting loyalties and new talent dynamics redefine how partners, vendors and customers work together. Abdul Rehman Tariq Butt, Middle East Regional Director at SolarWinds, tells us how these forces are reshaping partner influence, accelerating internal AI adoption and setting the stage for a pivotal year in 2026.
Vendors are beginning to recognise that if they want real scale, especially with AI-led portfolios, they must move towards‘ channel only’. AI solutions demand deep expertise, specialised talent and handson implementation capability. No vendor, no matter how established, can match the collective talent pool of the regional channel ecosystem. It has become the ultimate force multiplier.
This is particularly important as clients increasingly expect their implementing partner to take full responsibility for outcomes, not only components. Vendors who try to own too much of this risk dilute the relationship-driven model that has made the Middle East channel so effective.
The Middle East channel landscape is on the brink of its most significant reinvention in years. Artificial Intelligence( AI) is reshaping the economics of partnership, customers are rewriting the rules of loyalty and influence and senior talent is flowing in unexpected directions. The real story, though, isn’ t the technology – it’ s the power shift.
Now more than ever, partners have the leverage, the capability, and the market momentum to redefine what collaboration with vendors and customers should look like. In 2026, organisations that realise this early will set the pace for everyone else.
The rise of‘ channel only’ as vendors double down on ecosystems
For a long time,‘ channel first’ was seen as a strategic philosophy, not a strict operating model. Today, this is no longer enough.
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