Dropzone AI signs QBS for exclusive EMEA channel deal

Dropzone AI has signed an exclusive EMEA distribution partnership with QBS Software, giving QBS the right to distribute its security operations platform to MSSPs and VARs across the region.

The deal centres on Dropzone AI's AI SOC Analyst, a software agent designed to investigate security alerts from start to finish and deliver evidence-backed verdicts. QBS will offer the product through its partner network to managed security providers and resellers serving organisations with either outsourced or in-house security operations centres.

Security operations teams are under pressure from rising alert volumes and a shortage of trained analysts. The partnership is intended to help service providers expand security operations work without matching growth in analyst headcount, while giving resellers a product to sell to organisations that run their own SOC teams.

Dropzone AI says its AI SOC Analyst is already deployed at more than 300 companies. The vendor describes the product as part of a wider "Agentic SOC", a group of AI agents that work across detection and response tasks and connect with security tools already in use, including SIEM, SOAR, EDR and case management systems.

Under the arrangement, MSSPs in the QBS network will be able to use the software to investigate alerts around the clock, with the aim of shortening response times and improving adherence to service-level agreements. VARs, meanwhile, can offer the technology to customers with in-house teams that want to reduce false positives, ease alert fatigue and speed up investigations.

Channel focus

The partnership reflects a growing push by cyber security vendors to reach buyers through service providers and resellers rather than rely solely on direct sales. QBS is positioning the software for different operating models, including fully managed SOC services, co-managed services and internal security operations teams.

That approach matters because many organisations are trying to modernise security operations without replacing the core systems they already use. By integrating with existing security stacks, the software is intended to work alongside those tools rather than require wholesale changes to established workflows.

For managed security providers, commercial pressure is a central part of the sales argument. As customers generate more alerts, providers need to handle greater volumes while protecting margins, meeting contractual response targets and avoiding a corresponding rise in staffing costs.

Resellers face a different challenge. Many corporate security teams want help managing investigation workloads but are not looking to outsource all operations. That creates an opening for VARs that can sell products designed to support analysts within existing SOC teams.

Brett Candon, Vice President of International at Dropzone AI, outlined the company's rationale for the agreement.

"Security teams are under immense pressure to scale operations, meet increasingly stringent SLAs, and ensure regulatory compliance while maintaining resilience against rising alert volumes. Through this partnership with QBS, Dropzone AI will extend its reach to both MSSPs and VARs across EMEA. MSSP partners can scale service delivery and improve profitability, while VAR partners can help customers with in-house SOCs move from alert chaos to incident focus," said Candon.

Market pressure

The deal comes against a cyber security market backdrop in which buyers are being asked to respond more quickly to threats while also dealing with skills shortages. Security operations centres often face high alert volumes, and many teams still rely on analysts to sift through cases manually before deciding which incidents need escalation.

Suppliers of AI-based tools increasingly argue that software can take on more of the investigative burden, leaving human analysts to focus on confirmed threats and response work. Buyers, however, are also weighing questions about reliability, oversight and how such tools fit into existing operating models.

QBS says the partnership broadens its security portfolio and gives its partner base another product to take to market at a time when demand for SOC support remains strong. As distributor, it will serve as the route to market for channel partners across EMEA rather than sell only to end users directly.

Tom Corrigan, Chief Revenue Officer at QBS Software, said: "Our partnership with Dropzone AI strengthens QBS' security portfolio with advanced autonomous AI SOC capabilities that addresses a real challenge across the channel. MSSPs need to scale SOC services efficiently in a market where skilled security analysts are in short supply, while VARs need differentiated solutions that help customers modernise in-house security operations. By bringing category-defining AI SOC capabilities to our partner ecosystem, we're supporting growth, improving service delivery, and helping partners deliver stronger customer outcomes."