May 7, 2025

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IBM Expands AI Capabilities, Partners with Oracle, and Google Adds Gemini AI

Recent developments in the field of artificial intelligence have seen significant advancements, with IBM expanding its AI capabilities and partnering with Oracle to advance agentic AI and hybrid cloud. The company has introduced new enterprise AI services and enhancements to existing technologies, aiming to help businesses bridge the gap between experimentation and real-world deployments. IBM's watsonx platform has been updated with new features, including a centralized discovery hub for pre-built agents and a partner program for third-party developers. Additionally, IBM has introduced new AI solutions to ease deployment and integration for businesses, allowing them to build and deploy AI agents in under five minutes. Other companies, such as Google and Viz.ai, have also made significant strides in AI development, with Google adding Gemini AI to kids' accounts and Viz.ai launching new AI technology for neurovascular imaging. Meanwhile, the Indian Institute of Technology Madras has launched free online courses on artificial intelligence, and local governments are using AI agents to automate back office jobs. Furthermore, companies like Cisco and Meta are pushing open-source AI initiatives, and Wolters Kluwer's AI-powered platform has won an award for its financial solution.

Key Takeaways

  • IBM has expanded its AI capabilities and partnered with Oracle to advance agentic AI and hybrid cloud.
  • IBM's watsonx platform has been updated with new features, including a centralized discovery hub for pre-built agents and a partner program for third-party developers.
  • IBM has introduced new AI solutions to ease deployment and integration for businesses, allowing them to build and deploy AI agents in under five minutes.
  • Google has added Gemini AI to kids' accounts, allowing them to use the AI technology to help with homework and other tasks.
  • Viz.ai has launched new AI technology for neurovascular imaging, automatically converting CT angiography scans into high-resolution, AI-enhanced 3D images.
  • The Indian Institute of Technology Madras has launched free online courses on artificial intelligence, aimed at learners from various fields.
  • Local governments are using AI agents to automate back office jobs, such as finance, HR, and customer support.
  • Cisco and Meta are pushing open-source AI initiatives, with Cisco unveiling an 8-billion-parameter LLM built for cybersecurity.
  • Wolters Kluwer's AI-powered platform has won an award for its financial solution, empowering finance professionals to democratize access to meaningful financial data.
  • IBM CEO Arvind Krishna believes that AI investment will lead to a rise in employment, as it gives businesses more investment to put into other areas, such as software engineering, sales, and marketing.

IBM Expands AI Capabilities

IBM has announced new enterprise AI services and enhancements to existing technologies to help move more enterprise AI efforts into real-world deployment. The company is focusing on agentic AI, which enables businesses to build their own AI agents. IBM's watsonx platform will be updated with new features, including a centralized discovery hub for pre-built agents and a partner program for third-party developers. The goal is to help enterprises bridge the gap between experimentation and real-world deployments. According to IBM CEO Arvind Krishna, over a billion new applications will be built with generative AI in the next few years.

IBM Partners with Oracle

IBM and Oracle are expanding their partnership to advance agentic AI and hybrid cloud. IBM's watsonx platform will be available on Oracle Cloud Infrastructure, allowing customers to build and deploy AI agents. The partnership aims to fuel a new era of multi-agentic, AI-driven productivity and efficiency across the enterprise. IBM's watsonx Orchestrate will support multi-agent workflows, and the company's AI models will be available on Oracle Cloud Infrastructure. The partnership will provide customers with new ways to transform their businesses with AI.

IBM Simplifies AI Deployment

IBM has introduced new AI solutions to ease deployment and integration for businesses. The company's watsonx Orchestrate platform allows businesses to build and deploy AI agents in under five minutes. IBM has also introduced webMethods Hybrid Integration, which replaces traditional workflows with agent-driven automation. The company's AI solutions aim to help businesses scale enterprise AI and tackle integration challenges. According to IBM, the new solutions will help businesses to develop AI services and deploy them into their application of choice.

IBM Addresses AI Integration

IBM has unveiled a suite of hybrid technologies to address integration barriers that have hindered enterprise AI adoption. The company's watsonx platform will enable businesses to build and deploy AI agents using their own enterprise data. IBM has also introduced webMethods Hybrid Integration, which helps users manage integration complexity across applications, APIs, and hybrid cloud environments. The company's AI solutions aim to help businesses to scale enterprise AI and tackle integration challenges. According to IBM, the new solutions will help businesses to develop AI services and deploy them into their application of choice.

IBM CEO on AI Investment

IBM CEO Arvind Krishna says that customers are doubling down on their AI investments despite economic struggles. According to Krishna, AI is one of the unique technologies that can hit at the intersection of productivity, cost savings, and revenue scaling. IBM has introduced a new AI agent builder that provides options for building and deploying AI agents in under five minutes. The company's AI solutions aim to help businesses to scale enterprise AI and tackle integration challenges. Krishna emphasized that AI is integral to providing a competitive advantage that will help customers to speed up business and excel in the marketplace.

IIT Madras Launches AI Courses

The Indian Institute of Technology Madras has launched five free online courses on artificial intelligence through the Swayam Plus platform. The courses are designed to be interdisciplinary and cater to learners from fields such as science, engineering, commerce, and the arts. The courses do not require prior AI or coding experience and include hands-on activities, real-world datasets, and case study-based learning. Registration is open until May 12, 2025. The courses are aligned with the National Credit Framework and can be adopted by universities as credit-earning skill development programs.

IIT Madras Offers Free AI Courses

The Indian Institute of Technology Madras has launched five free online courses focused on artificial intelligence through the SWAYAM Plus platform. The courses are designed to be accessible to participants without prior experience in AI or programming. Each program requires between 25 to 45 hours of engagement and includes applied case studies and real-world datasets. The available courses include AI in Physics, AI in Chemistry, AI in Accounting, Cricket Analytics with AI, and AI/ML using Python. The courses are delivered in English and include practical components such as coding exercises and data analysis tasks.

IBM Introduces LinuxONE Emperor 5

IBM has introduced a new mainframe, the LinuxONE Emperor 5, which is engineered to deliver unprecedented levels of security, cost-efficiency, and AI acceleration for mission-critical enterprise workloads. The system is powered by the new IBM Telum II processor and features a dedicated on-chip AI accelerator. The LinuxONE Emperor 5 also supports the IBM Spyre Accelerator, which contains 32 AI accelerator cores. The system comes with advanced security features, including confidential computing and NIST-standardized post-quantum cryptographic algorithms.

Local Governments Use AI Agents

Stack AI, a startup, is creating chatbots and AI agents that can automate back office jobs across functions like finance, HR, and customer support. Local government agencies in California, Texas, and Massachusetts are using Stack's artificial intelligence systems to pour through piles of documents and extract data. The company has raised $16 million in Series A funding and aims to be the Excel of AI. Stack AI's CEO, Bernard Aceituno, says that AI models are trapped behind Jupiter notebooks and that the company's platform offers the building blocks to be customized based on the task at hand.

Google Adds Gemini AI to Kids' Accounts

Google is adding Gemini AI to kids' accounts, allowing them to use the AI technology to help with homework and other tasks. Parents will receive an email the first time their child uses Gemini, and they can opt out if they choose to. Google encourages parents to talk to their kids about what to expect from the AI and to practice vigilance. The company suggests explaining to kids that Gemini isn't a real person, that it can sometimes make things up, and to always cross-check Gemini's work.

UToledo Foundation Uses AI Engagement Officer

The University of Toledo Foundation has introduced a virtual engagement officer powered by artificial intelligence, named Doug Reynolds. Doug will interact with alumni, donors, and community members by sharing information on events and engagement opportunities. The AI technology was developed by Givezy, a digital fundraising and engagement company. The University of Toledo Foundation is the first nonprofit to utilize this technology in the state of Ohio.

Wolters Kluwer Wins Award

Wolters Kluwer's AI-powered CCH Tagetik Intelligent Platform has been named as the Silver Stevie Winner in the Artificial Intelligence/Machine Learning Solution - Financial category of the 2025 American Business Awards. The platform digitally transforms the efficiency, accuracy, and strategic ability of the Office of the CFO. It empowers finance professionals to democratize access to meaningful financial data, manage and control massive datasets, and unlock hidden insights. The platform enables CFOs to unlock the answers they need from their data in a fraction of the time to make better-informed, faster, strategic decisions.

Viz.ai Launches New AI Technology

Viz.ai has launched Viz 3D CTA, a new AI technology that automatically converts CT angiography scans into high-resolution, AI-enhanced 3D images. The technology addresses challenges in neurovascular imaging, including delays due to manual 3D renderings and limited spatial context in PACS. Viz 3D CTA offers automated postprocessing, skull-stripped views, and interactive tools. The technology is now available to hospitals and health systems on the Viz.ai One platform.

Cisco and Meta Push Open-Source AI

Cisco, Meta, and ProjectDiscovery have announced open-source initiatives to push unified and community-driven security infrastructures. Cisco unveiled Foundation-sec-8B, an 8-billion-parameter LLM built for cybersecurity, and released it under the Apache 2.0 license. Meta expanded its AI Defenders Suite with Llama Guard 4 and LlamaFirewall to detect policy violations and prompt injections. ProjectDiscovery's open-source vulnerability scanner, Nuclei, earned the 'Most Innovative Startup' award for its community-driven model and rapid CVE detection capabilities.

IBM CEO on AI and Employment

IBM CEO Arvind Krishna says that the company's investment in artificial intelligence has ultimately led to a rise in employment. According to Krishna, IBM replaced a few hundred human resources staffers with AI agents, but the company hired more programmers and salespeople. Krishna noted that the impact of AI is to give businesses more investment to put into other areas, such as software engineering, sales, and marketing. He emphasized that AI is integral to providing a competitive advantage that will help customers to speed up business and excel in the marketplace.

Sources

Artificial Intelligence IBM AI Agents Watsonx Agentic AI Generative AI