Heaptalk, Jakarta — A global technology company, International Business Machines Corporation (IBM), has rolled out a US$500 million, or equal to Rp7.8 trillion, venture fund to inject into diverse Artificial Intelligence (AI) companies, particularly in the early to hyper-growth startups, focusing on expediting generative AI technology and research for the enterprise.
According to the Senior Vice President, Software, and Chief Commercial Officer at IBM, Rob Thomas, AI technology is estimated to unlock nearly US$16 trillion in productivity by 2030. With the launch of the IBM Enterprise AI venture Fund, he claimed the company opened up another channel to harness the tremendous potential of the AI revolution into tangible, positive outcomes for IBM and funded companies
“This fund is yet another way we are doubling our commitment to responsible AI innovation through Watsonx and bolstering organizations to put this transformational technology to work,” added Thomas.
Led by a talented team at IBM, the fund will provide each startup opportunities to develop strategic partnerships with this technology company while gaining operational expertise on product, engineering, and go-to-market strategies.
In its operations, this technology company based in the United States has proven experience providing AI technology for enterprises worldwide with its AI and data platform, Watsonx. With the IBM Enterprise AI Venture Fund, the company will enhance its ecosystem of AI partnerships, including working with companies leveraging and building on the Watsonx platform and creating long-term value for AI leaders and new and existing clients.
Investment record of IBM in AI companies
International Business Machines Corporation continues to perform its objective to promote AI technology for business through its latest investment journey in AI-based companies.
In more detail, in August, IBM injected strategic funds into Hugging Face company at US$235 million in a Series D round. The company has contributed to hundreds of open models and datasets on Hugging Face, including the recent release of the Geospatial Foundation Model in cooperation with NASA. This technology is claimed to be the most significant geospatial foundation model on the Hugging platform and the first-ever open-source AI model built in partnership with NASA.
IBM also recently participated in HiddenLayer’s Series A funding to expand its talent base, increase go-to-market efforts, and further invest in its award-winning Machine Learning Security (MLSec) Platform. As information, HiddenLayer is the leading security provider for AI models and assets, and this funding round marks the most considerable Series A funding raised by a cybersecurity company focused on protecting AI this year.
