Perspectives
12 February 2026
Macquarie Capital’s Software & Services team outlines the key areas that are important to watch across these sectors in 2026. The themes reflect how AI, market dynamics and sector-specific pressures are shaping the software and services industry and guiding the team’s priorities for the year ahead.
Expanding beyond traditional education pathways, K-12 and higher education institutions are increasingly prioritising lifelong learning, with a growing emphasis on upskilling and reskilling.
Improved reliability of AI has allowed it to shift from lower-stakes use and optimisation applications to more critical learner-facing solutions. AI will enable new entrants to introduce content solutions that will inevitably displace some current players.
Macquarie Capital served as an exclusive financial advisor to Edulog on its strategic growth investment from Serent Capital
AI governance remains a shifting, undefined but ubiquitous need as the sector sees increased focus on highly verticalised tools and solutions. Prioritisation of managing risk over compliance is becoming more common given the shifting regulatory landscape.
AI and automation are redefining operations as companies embed these capabilities into underwriting, property analytics and workflow automation to cut costs, improve compliance and deliver faster, smarter decisions. As a result, tools that were once optional enhancements are becoming strategic imperatives.
Integrated platforms are becoming the standard as the market consolidates around end-to-end ecosystems that connect origination, servicing and property management, enabling seamless data flow, enhancing customer experience and creating new monetisation opportunities as digital-first engagement becomes the norm.
GenAI is accelerating adoption across core talent acquisition and management workflows, reshaping how organisations source, assess and retain top talent. Demand is rising for integrated, multi-source data platforms that enable deeper talent intelligence, holistic workforce assessment and data-driven strategic planning. Strategics are fueling sector consolidation amid intensifying Agentic AI competition, driving a clear uptick in M&A activity.
Agentic AI is improving workflow efficiency across marketing, e-commerce enablement and advertising as these functions continue to converge. This convergence is pushing platforms to expand their capabilities and deepen cross-sell opportunities.
As new tools broaden access and drive greater institutional and retail demand for alternative assets, the financial technology sector continues to advance. Meanwhile, as operations, regulatory requirements, and compliance processes become increasingly complex and expensive, third-party outsourcing continues to be a strategic priority throughout the ecosystem.
Financial innovations in embedded finance, digital assets and digital banking are driving greater institutional and retail adoption. New evergreen fund structures, including interval funds and tender offer funds, are also gaining traction, broadening liquidity options and expanding investor access to private markets.
Platform consolidation is accelerating as large strategic technology and cybersecurity platforms acquire best-of-breed and single point solution vendors to reduce complexity and streamline security stacks. AI is becoming the new M&A catalyst as acquirers target companies with AI-native capabilities for advanced threat detection, autonomous response and security operations. The market is seeing a resurgence of PE activity after a slowdown, with recorded megadeals including Palo Alto's acquisition of CyberArk (2025) and Thoma Bravo’s acquisitions of Darktrance and Secureworks (2024).
Geopolitical tension and evolving regulation continue to drive demand as rising cyber threats from nation state actors keep cybersecurity a top priority for boards and governments. Mounting compliance pressures are also pushing companies to adopt solutions that ensure they meet evolving standards. Concurrently, intensified processes around cyber due diligence has become routine as acquirers scrutinise security posture, code integrity and potential vulnerabilities, reflecting the view that a target’s own cyber resilience is both a critical value driver and a potential deal breaker.
Macquarie Capital acted as exclusive financial adviser to Identity Automation on its sale to Jamf
Investment in supply chain orchestration is leading to enhanced visibility, optimisation and efficiency as Agentic AI’s adaptability and autonomy drive massive change to replenishment, routing and pricing. Digital twins are becoming increasingly important for strategic decision making. At the same time, consolidation will persist, creating new end-to-end integrated platforms.
In the near-term, macro uncertainties continue to weigh on technology services that are perceived to be more discretionary, particularly following significant pandemic-era spending on digital transformation. IT service companies remain optimistic on secular AI-driven tailwinds, fueling increased spending on large-scale digital engineering projects. As such, AI-related IT services spending is still in its early innings, but digital engineering firms should ultimately benefit from the investment needed to modernise platforms and systems for the new AI ecosystem.
Heading into 2026, accelerating AI adoption, deepening platform integration and a renewed wave of consolidation are shaping the trajectory of the broader ecosystem. As AI becomes central to core workflows, organisations are shifting their focus toward operational efficiency, modernisation and intelligence‑driven execution. Taken together, these dynamics are sustaining investment momentum and driving active dealmaking as companies pursue scale, resilience and more predictable operational performance.
Sam Shah is the Co-Head of Macquarie Capital, Americas and leads the firm’s Software & Services franchise globally as well as US industry coverage efforts. He has over 20 years of experience covering Software and Tech-Enabled Services efforts. He specialises in Knowledge & Learning and Information & Data Analytics software companies and has completed over 300 transactions in those areas over the past decade.
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