The content team at Channel Partners Newsletter tracks stories of interest to the technology advisor and wider channel communities. Anyone selling communication and connectivity solutions will want to stay abreast of these developing stories or catch up on ones they have missed. All links are valid as of Feb. 26.

Anthropic Accuses Chinese AI Labs of Mining Claude

Anthropic accused three Chinese AI companies of setting up more than 24,000 fake accounts with its Claude AI model to improve their own models. Anthropic claimed DeepSeek, Moonshot AI, and MiniMax generated more than 16 million exchanges with Claude through those accounts using a technique called distillation. The accusations come amid debates over how strictly to enforce export controls on advanced AI chips, a policy aimed at curbing China’s AI development. Read the TechCrunch story.

Bear Creek Partners Backs ARG as Investment Wave Floods Channel

ARG, one of the channel’s oldest and largest technology advisory firms, has agreed to a growth investment as a new wave of investors descends on the TA market with fresh strategies. The Virginia-based company agreed to an infusion from Bear Creek Partners, advised by investment bank Q Advisors. ARG will use the funding to hire new enterprise sellers and sales engineers, make strategic acquisitions and expand its business development network. Read the Channel Dive story.

Analysts Expect Uncertainty as Tariff Tiff Continues

Analysts tell Fierce Network that the latest U.S. tariff news will create uncertainty in U.S. and European tech companies. One analyst said the new tariffs mean tech companies will have to "muddle through" unless Congress makes a decision on the Trump administration’s 15% tariffs that will go into effect after the Supreme Court struck down earlier levies. Read about it on Fierce Network.

Energy is the Trojan Horse for Partners in Data Centers

Channel partners are turning to energy and power solutions to capitalize on the flood of AI services and data center spending. Energy integrator and distributor Abundant IoT grew its supplier portfolio 35% in 2025, enlisting an arsenal of renewable and off-grid energy providers. Abundant IoT is pairing those vendors with historically telecom-focused brokers, who are cross-selling energy to their clients and using energy as a Trojan horse to gain access to data center accounts. Read the Channel Dive story.

EchoStar-SpaceX Spectrum Deal Catches Heat

SpaceX's proposed acquisitions of EchoStar spectrum is getting more static in the FCC docket as Liberty Latin American (LLA) presses its case that the agreements interfered with its mobile plans. Meanwhile, dozens of tower and property owners continue to urge the FCC to require Dish Wireless to pay its bills. Late last year, Liberty Latin America asked the FCC to require SpaceX to meet all of the terrestrial buildout deadlines currently applicable to EchoStar's lower AWS-3, AWS-4 and H-Block licenses. LLA claimed that the spectrum transaction will hinder its plans to build out its 5G network in regions covering Puerto Rico and the US Virgin Islands and effectively create spectrum "dead zones" in those areas. See the Light Reading story.

Dell Launches Ruggedized Outdoor Server for Cloud RAN, Edge AI

Ahead of Mobile World Congress 2026 in Barcelona, Dell introduced the ruggedized Dell PowerEdge XR9700, which it claims is the first outdoor x86 server for cloud RAN and edge applications. The server, available in 2H 2026, is designed to be installed on utility poles, attached to rooftops and the exterior walls of buildings, where it's exposed to the elements. Dell claims the hardware is designed to facilitate 5G densification and bringing AI and other applications to dense urban areas, remote locations and other spaces where data is created and consumed, and space and power are constrained. Read the Fierce Network story.

Pure Storage Relaunches as Everpure, Pivots to Data Management

Pure Storage is now Everpure, with the company undergoing a rebrand to better signify its efforts beyond storage to “defining the future of data management.” The brand’s synonymous orange branding looks to be staying, but a new addition will see it acquire 1Touch. The New York-based data security company was founded in 2017 and will form the figurehead of Pure’s rebranding and subsequent push beyond pure-play data storage. Read the SDxCentral story.

Red Hat Launches AI Platform Built on OpenShift

Red Hat launched an AI Enterprise platform, which it claims provides high-performance AI inference, model tuning and customization and agent deployment and management. Red Hat AI Enterprise runs on Red Hat OpenShift and supports any model and any hardware across any environment. Read the Telecoms.com story.

AI-native Networks will Precede 6G, 80% of Telecom Operators Say

Nvidia’s latest State of AI in Telecommunications report revealed almost 80% of telecom operators expect to see AI-native networks get the jump on 6G deployment, while around two-thirds said AI is driving autonomous network build out. Nvidia’s report surveyed more than 1,000 respondents worldwide, spanning operators, network equipment providers, system integrators, software vendors, and other players in the telecom ecosystem. Read the SDxCentral story.