OpenAI has partnered with SearchKings, a Toronto-based digital marketing firm, to provide ChatGPT services to small and medium-sized businesses. This collaboration aims to help these businesses effectively integrate artificial intelligence into their operations, particularly in the home services sector, addressing the challenges many face in adapting to AI technologies. According to Ben Tyson, Senior Partner Enablement Manager at OpenAI, the partnership leverages SearchKings’ deep understanding of the SMB market to offer tailored solutions that enhance operational efficiency and customer service. Matthew Glickman, Co-Founder and COO of SearchKings, emphasized the importance of guided implementation for business owners, ensuring they can compete by utilizing AI capabilities previously accessible only to larger enterprises. The program is set to launch in the coming weeks, providing SMBs with priority access to essential tools and training.
Why do we care?
So here’s the part that matters: OpenAI just signaled who they think is going to bring AI to small businesses — and it wasn’t MSPs. Their first partner is a marketing agency. That tells you exactly where their head is. They’re chasing fast adoption, not long-term operational stability.
And that should make every IT services company sit up. Because if AI starts entering your customers’ businesses through marketing vendors or automation consultants, you’re going to inherit a mess. Unsecured prompts, shadow AI workflows, random tools wired into core systems — the whole thing. Not because anyone is trying to cause trouble, but because they’re not thinking about governance or risk. They’re thinking about leads and quick wins.
And the announcement itself? It’s all gloss. No standards. No certification. No partner economics. It gives you no clue whether OpenAI is building a real channel or just experimenting. And that uncertainty is the point — you cannot wait for OpenAI to tell you what role you’re going to play.
The takeaway is simple: if you want to own the AI conversation with your customers, you need to move now. Build your AI readiness offering, lead with governance, and position yourself as the adult in the room. Because vendors are clearly staking out their territory. And if MSPs don’t define what responsible AI adoption looks like, someone else will.
Across all these stories, there’s one common thread: customers aren’t struggling with technology — they’re struggling with organizational capacity. Budgets are growing, hiring is rising, VMware is forcing modernization, and AI roles are expanding faster than companies can even define ownership. The constraint isn’t tools, it’s structure. And that’s the real opening for IT providers. The opportunity isn’t in deploying platforms — it’s in orchestrating the transformation: governance, modernization roadmaps, and cross-department alignment. Become the operating system for your customers’ transformation, and you own the strategic spend — not just the support work.