PREDICTIONS
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Mike Barron , UK managing director, SYNAXON We have ambitious targets for 2026, and I am confident it will be another good year for SYNAXON UK. Our partnerships with resellers, distributors and vendor partners are getting stronger and we have a
going to have an impact at some point, with AI data centres taking up most of the available supply. There will also be much more focus on infrastructure investment. For many businesses, this is long overdue now. Our advice to partners is to start talking to customers about server, storage, power management and connectivity upgrades as soon as possible, and work with our team to plan ahead and make sure you are ready to meet customer needs. Doing profitable business has and always will be the challenge for partners. Every reseller has services and added- value elements but beyond that, they still need to maximise their margins in every way they can. They also need to know that they can rely upon and trust their supplier partners to look after them and deliver on their promises. It’s understanding and getting these simple things right that makes all the difference. n
talented team of people who are focused on delivering the best customer service. I’m sure the IT industry and the wider channel will do well – especially if we see a more sustained return of general business confidence. Whether that happens or not, it’s all about how well you look after your customers, and who delivers the best and most personal level of service. Whether the wider industry is doing well or struggling, that’s what matters and makes the real difference. In 2026, we expect to see the client upgrade wave continuing for some time: not everyone has yet stepped up to Windows 11 and AI will, of course, continue to be a significant driver. Supply constraints on SDD, HDD and RAM are
Mike Barron
synaxon-services.com
Spencer Starkey , executive VP EMEA, SonicWall In 2026, the UK’s chronic underinvestment
Adversaries will increasingly lean on AI-assisted hacks to probe and exploit the systems businesses rely on to keep operations running. Without substantial investment in modern defences, particularly those capable of identifying and countering AI-driven threats, 2026 could see significant disruptions affecting millions of consumers and businesses across the UK. The defining security trend of 2026 will be the emergence of continuous, AI- versus-AI conflict: autonomous defensive models battling autonomously evolving threats in real time. Those who fail to embrace this shift will find themselves unprepared for the sophistication speed, and persistence of attacks that are quickly becoming the new normal. n
in cybersecurity over the past decade will become increasingly visible as these threats escalate. Without a decisive shift in funding and strategy, especially toward AI-native defences, we risk a scenario where our public services and critical infrastructure simply cannot keep up with the velocity of attacks. It’s also clear that UK sectors once seen as low risk for cyberattacks are now in the spotlight. The breaches of M&S and JLR highlighted how retailers and manufacturing giants are now just as vulnerable as critical national infrastructure. This shift will intensify in 2026. Retail, logistics, automotive manufacturing and even food distribution face rising pressures as they become targets.
Spencer Starkey
sonicwall.com
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