TBR Talks: Decoding Strategies and Ecosystems of the Globe's Top Tech Firms

TBR Cloud & Software Senior Analyst Alex Demeule discusses which SaaS incumbents are best positioned to execute a true hard pivot toward AI, highlighting how workforce restructuring, sales realignment and platform modernization at vendors like Salesforce, SAP and Microsoft reveal early signs of strategic transformation. Additionally, this conversation explores the growing tension between general-purpose large language models and specialized small language models, digging into the economics, power constraints, and architectural trade-offs that will define enterprise-grade AI applications.

This conversation explores the big agenda items shaping the 2026 telecom landscape: the integration of 6G into market forecasts, edge computing’s renewed relevance, the energy problem slowing scale, and how previously hyped technologies like blockchain and the metaverse may be poised for resurgence.

As we close out 2025, “TBR Talks” host Patrick Heffernan and producer and TBR Marketing Coordinator & Account Executive Haley Demers sit down for a candid, end-of-year retrospective and a sneak peek at what listeners can expect in the new year. Additionally, the pair unpack the podcast’s growth, with nearly half of this season’s conversations featuring voices from outside TBR, and share a behind-the-scenes view of the show. They also discuss how those external perspectives have broadened the scope of the dialogue; how the show has evolved as listeners began to proactively reach out, asking to participate; and the unexpected value that emerged when technology-focused discussions turned personal.

TBR Digital Transformation Principal Analyst Boz Hristov joins host Patrick Heffernan in this episode to detail Infosys’ key points from Infosys Americas Confluence 2025. Boz shares his insights into Infosys’ strategy changes and why clients choose Infosys, and looks at whether Infosys has figured out the staffing model of the future.

Batia Stein, managing partner at EY Law and partner at EY People Advisory Services, and Chris Gordon, Canada region leader at EY People Advisory Services Tax, join “TBR Talks” host Patrick Heffernan for a discussion on EY’s AI strategy for its People Advisory Services practice. Stein and Gordon detail EY’s approach to automation in the tax and audit divisions within EY, and the trio also shares their thoughts on immigration, cybersecurity, data privacy and data sovereignty, as well as tax, HR and what the future may hold.

IT Infrastructure Principal Analyst Angela Lambert and Senior Analyst and NVIDIA research lead Ben Carbonneau join “TBR Talks” to share key takeaways and insights into NVIDIA’s strategies for 2026 and beyond. Recently, “TBR Talks” host Patrick Heffernan met with executives and others within the GPU ecosystem at NVIDIA GTC, and on this episode, all three analysts share their thoughts on partnerships, business strategy and growth for the leading GPU firm.

Senior Analyst Ben Carbonneau and Principal Analyst Angela Lambert review Lenovo’s 2025 Global Industry Analyst Conference, where Lenovo provided updates on its overall strategy and ambitions to shift its perception from a PC vendor to a full-stack, end-to-end solution provider. The pair discusses the event’s AI strategy announcement, how this year’s GIAC differed from past years and where Lenovo is differentiating itself from peers.

A mix of retrospective and forward-looking thoughts about 2026 and beyond, this episode offers insights into what the team got right in their predictions for 2025 and what they anticipate will come next. AI servers, unified data, AI services, strategy consulting and how AI is impacting the services business model are all topics on the table.

TBR IT Infrastructure Principal Analyst Angela Lambert and TBR Digital Transformation Principal Analyst Boz Hristov share how they and their teams look at the future of their respective IT market segments.

A mix of retrospective and forward-looking thoughts about 2026 and beyond, this episode offers insights into what the team got right in their predictions for 2025 and what they anticipate will come next. AI servers, unified data, AI services, strategy consulting and how AI is impacting the services business model are all topics on the table.

Last year Principal Analyst Chris Antlitz predicted major communication service providers (CSPs) would not realize ROI from 5G investments, which they did not, while Principal Analyst Allan Krans predicted Microsoft Azure would close the gap with Amazon Web Services in the IaaS market, which it did. Patrick walks listeners through each leading analyst’s process for making predictions and discusses with them how AI has and has not changed the way they go about making their market predictions.

Principal Analyst and Host Patrick Heffernan reviews TBR’s 2025 telecom and cloud predictions against the year’s actual market developments as well as what these developments mean for our 2026 predictions in an age of AI-enabled research and analysis.

Last year Principal Analyst Chris Antlitz predicted major communication service providers (CSPs) would not realize ROI from 5G investments, which they did not, while Principal Analyst Allan Krans predicted Microsoft Azure would close the gap with Amazon Web Services in the IaaS market, which it did. Patrick walks listeners through each leading analyst’s process for making predictions and discusses with them how AI has and has not changed the way they go about making their market predictions.

TBR Senior Vice President, Sales & Marketing, Dan Demers interviews show host Patrick Heffernan on how the globe’s top global systems integrators, ISVs, hyperscalers and OEMs use TBR’s proprietary data and analysis to make validated and data-backed decisions. From strategy planning based on partners’ annualized revenue or headcount growth to allocation of training budgets and schedules to align engineering resources, TBR’s unique data and analysis within the ecosystem give leaders a meaningful and independent set of data to make partnership investment decisions.