For the week ending Oct. 18, CRN takes a look at the companies that brought their ‘A’ game to the channel including Presidio, Intel, AMD, Google Cloud, Netskope, Cyera and Inforcer.

The Week Ending Oct. 18

Topping this week’s Came to Win list is channel superstar Presidio for striking a strategic collaborative agreement (SCA) that takes its relationship with cloud giant Amazon Web Services to the next level.

Also making the list are Intel and AMD who, despite their long-running rivalry, this week launched an initiative together to expand the ecosystem for the x86 instruction set architecture. Google Cloud makes this week’s list for two moves: Debuting new generative AI development training opportunities for partners and introducing a new earnings hub portal to help partners track earned and potential incentives.

Data security companies Netskope and Cyera are both here for making savvy acquisitions. And Microsoft-focused ISV Inforcer secured $19 million in Series A funding to support its rapid growth, product development efforts and expansion into the U.S. market.

Presidio Signs ‘Huge’ AWS Agreement To Drive GenAI, Sales And Innovation

Channel superstar Presidio doubled down on its Amazon Web Services business this week by signing a strategic collaboration agreement (SCA) with the cloud leader that will boost funding resources, increase employee headcount and drive new industry-specific solutions, including solutions incorporating generative AI.

From new GenAI funding via AWS’ Migration Acceleration Program (MAP) to additional go-to-market and proof-of-concept funding, Presidio’s new SCA is a huge win for the New York-based channel stalwart.

The ultimate goal for AWS and Presidio with the SCA is to create innovative industry-specific solutions for joint customers across the globe in industries such as healthcare, life sciences, gaming, financial services, and sports, media and entertainment.

“Over this three-year time period, there’s probably 80 people that get hired, specifically between AWS and Presidio, to focus on reaching the targets we want to get jointly together,” Chris Cagnazzi, chief innovation officer at Presidio, tells CRN. “This is industry-focused and it’s generative AI focused.”

The SCA will combine Presidio’s consulting services with AWS technologies to drive business outcomes for customers. The goal is to accelerate customers’ migration, modernization and optimization of their data and applications to better leverage new technologies such as generative AI and machine learning. One such service is Presidio’s Rapid Innovation methodology that helps customers use AWS GenAI services around AI-assisted software development, data modernization, AI-enabled self-service and intelligent document processing.

Intel-AMD Alliance To ‘Shape The Future” Of x86 Architecture

Archrivals Intel and AMD win kudos this week for their effort to expand the ecosystem for the x86 instruction set architecture that “has served as the bedrock of modern computing” for more than 40 years.

The two companies this week announced the creation of a new x86 ecosystem advisory group to “shape the future of x86 and foster developer innovation through a more unified set of instructions and architectural interfaces.” This is expected to “enhance compatibility, predictability and consistency across x86 product offerings,” the two companies said.

Intel and AMD have already enlisted a number of IT industry giants for the initiative including Microsoft, Dell Technologies, HP Inc., Hewlett Packard Enterprise, Lenovo and Google—as well as Linux creator Linus Torvalds.

Other founding members include VMware parent company Broadcom, Facebook parent company Meta, Oracle, IBM-owned Red Hat and Epic Games founder Tim Sweeney. In an interview with CRN Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang offered his endorsement for the x86 effort.

Intel and AMD said industry-wide collaboration around the future of the x86 instruction set architecture is warranted because of evolving developments such as dynamic AI workloads, custom chiplet designs and advancements in 3-D chip packaging and system architectures.

Intel’s and AMD’s x86 CPU businesses have faced a growing threat from the Arm instruction set architecture, which has enabled consumer tech giant Apple, mobile chip designer Qualcomm, and cloud computing giants like Amazon Web Services, Microsoft and Google to design their own CPUs for the PC and cloud markets.

Google Cloud Offers Partners New AI Development Courses, Earnings Hub Platform

Google Cloud this week added four new learning paths to help developers build generative artificial intelligence skills for developing applications, managing and securing machine learning models, generating content and analyzing data – all particularly important for the company’s solution providers bringing AI products and services to market.

Erin Rifkin, managing director of Google Cloud Learning, told CRN that “AI is by far the channel’s biggest opportunity yet, and we’re moving as fast as we can to provide the training that partners are gonna need to be able to meet that demand.”

The learning paths feature in-depth courses that guide learners as they build proficiency before testing their skills in a real-life challenge lab, according to Google. Developers who complete the hands-on training are awarded a skills badge for showcasing their expertise on resumes and social media, according to the vendor, which has more than 100,000 partners worldwide.

Google Cloud this week also introduced a new “earnings hub” platform that helps partners track earned and potential incentives, with plans for Workspace and Security Operations incentives tracking in the coming weeks and chat experiences powered by artificial intelligence “in the coming months.”

The platform is part of Google Cloud’s move to empower services partners and simplify payments for pilots, migrations, post-sale services and other incentives, Colleen Kapase, Google Cloud’s vice president of channels and partner programs, told CRN.

Data Security Providers Netskope, Cyera Make Strategic Acquisitions

Data security developers Netskope and Cyera both make this week’s Came to Win list for making key acquisitions that focus on the data security posture management (DSPM) and data loss prevention (DLP) technology categories.

DSPM provides visibility into the locations and security of data stored in an organization’s cloud environments. It can provide a basis for locking down the data in the cloud at a time when cybercriminals and nation-state hackers alike are increasingly focusing on data theft.

Netskope acquired DSPM startup Dasera, which the SASE platform provider said would enhance the data protection capabilities of its Netskope One platform. Cyera, meanwhile, said that its acquisition of Trail Security, “significantly elevates Cyera’s AI-powered platform” through the addition of “AI-enhanced DLP technology.”

Microsoft-Focused ISV Inforcer Secures $19M In Funding, Aims For US Market Expansion

U.K.-based software company Inforcer makes this week’s list for securing $19 million in Series A funding to support its rapid growth, product development efforts and expansion into the U.S. market.

Inforcer, which specializes in developing software for managing and automating Microsoft 365 policies across multiple tenants, has big growth ambitions for the U.S. market. About 30 percent of the company’s revenue comes from U.S.-based MSPs, but its co-founders foresee a shift within the next two years and are aiming for 70 percent of their business to originate from the U.S.

“With this funding, we’re really focused on brand exposure and expansion in the U.S.,” Jamie Daum, Inforcer co-founder and CEO, told CRN in an exclusive interview. “We’re attending key industry events and building relationships within the MSP communities.”

The funding round, led by Meritech Capital, will go toward tripling the size of Inforcer’s product development team, enhancing its customer experience division and building its MSP-focused community. A “significant portion” of the funding will be devoted to accelerating product development, Daum said.

The company has already seen significant traction, growing from eight employees to about 50 in under a year. With an office in California and seven U.S.-based employees, they plan to double that head count with this funding.