International Business Machines

Temenos announced that SACOMBANK, a leading Vietnamese commercial bank, has successfully upgraded its Temenos Core Banking platform to a hybrid cloud environment, moving from on-premises deployment to support greater scalability and faster innovation. The upgraded platform, deployed on Red Hat OpenShift and IBM Power infrastructure, serves millions of retail and SME customers and processes 13 million transactions daily, delivering a 200% improvement in application performance, three-times faster deployment cycles, and a 50% reduction in server footprint. Additionally, SACOMBANK has selected Temenos Payments Hub to enhance cross-border payments, building on its long-standing relationship with Temenos. The bank's Deputy CEO, Luu Danh Duc, highlighted the upgrade as a key milestone in its digital transformation, while Temenos and IBM executives praised the collaboration for strengthening the bank's foundation for innovation and growth.

Jim Cramer defended IBM on Mad Money, calling it a hated stock that deserves better despite its tough performance. He noted that while the stock is down, it is doing better than people think, and he advised buying on dips, citing CEO Arvind Krishna's fantastic job. IBM's second-quarter revenue was $17.2 billion with non-GAAP EPS of $2.93, in line with expectations, as software revenue grew 5% to $7.8 billion, driven by Red Hat's 11% growth and double-digit data software expansion. However, infrastructure revenue fell 7% to $3.8 billion due to mainframe cyclicality, prompting management to lower full-year constant-currency revenue growth guidance to 4-5%. Institutional interest rose, with 74 hedge funds holding stakes in Q2, up from 59, and major funds like AQR, Marshall Wace, and Citadel increasing positions by 43%, 492%, and 107% respectively, while short interest stands at 2.62% of float.

IBM announced today that it has completed its acquisition of HRL Laboratories, a leading research and development institution specializing in quantum computing, quantum sensing, advanced communications, electronics, manufacturing, and materials science. The deal brings together HRL's expertise in silicon-spin qubits with IBM's leadership in superconducting quantum computing, and adds capabilities in quantum sensing, quantum materials, cryogenics, control electronics, packaging, and interconnect technologies expected to strengthen IBM's quantum hardware roadmap. IBM's roadmap includes its fault-tolerant quantum computer IBM Quantum Starling, expected by 2029 to perform 100 million quantum operations, followed by Blue Jay, its next-generation fault-tolerant quantum computer targeted for the mid-2030s. HRL's silicon-based quantum technologies will also support collaboration with Anderon, IBM's pure-play quantum wafer foundry, to advance scalable manufacturing. Boeing and General Motors, HRL's former owners, will continue to partner with IBM and HRL on quantum applications and advanced technology development. Financial terms were not disclosed.

IBM announced a new dual-architecture mainframe processor for IBM Z and LinuxONE, developed with Arm, that can execute IBM and Arm instructions on the same chip. The processor allows enterprise workloads to run natively across IBM mainframe and Arm platforms, expanding application and infrastructure options for large organizations. This is the first time IBM mainframe systems will support concurrent execution of both Arm and IBM instructions, aimed at wider workload flexibility and hybrid IT use cases. The move ties into IBM's hybrid cloud and AI narrative, broadening the addressable workload set for IBM Z and LinuxONE while tapping into the Arm software ecosystem that already supports cloud native and AI applications.

The global AI governance market is projected to grow from $0.89 billion in 2024 to $5.78 billion by 2029, a compound annual growth rate of 45.3%, according to a new report from MarketsandMarkets. The firm attributes the surge to rising regulatory oversight, responsible AI initiatives, and growing enterprise adoption of generative AI, which are accelerating investment in governance platforms. North America is expected to hold the largest market share in 2024, while Asia Pacific is the fastest-growing region. Key players include Microsoft, IBM, SAS Institute, DataRobot, and Dataiku.

IBM is introducing a new set of AI-powered experiences for the 2026 US Open, developed with the United States Tennis Association to make live tennis more personalized and interactive for fans. The innovations include a Live Updates homepage that prioritizes favorite players, a new Serve Quality metric that analyzes serving mechanics across all 254 singles matches using limb-tracking technology at 50 times per second, and an enhanced Likelihood to Win feature with Key Moments that explains turning points. IBM is also upgrading Match Chat with watsonx Orchestrate to answer fan questions in natural language using live match data and historical statistics. The company faces competition from Microsoft and Alphabet, which are also expanding AI and cloud-based sports technology through partnerships with leagues like the NBA and MLB.

A new IBM-commissioned study finds that 46% of surveyed sports fans have higher digital expectations than one to two years ago, with 30% now most likely to use subscription streaming to watch live sports, nearly even with the 29% who prefer linear broadcast. AI use among respondents jumped from 52% to 69% year over year, while trust in AI-generated sports content dipped from 63% to 59%, and accuracy was cited by 45% as the top driver of trust in AI-powered insights. Nearly three-quarters of fans use sports apps, and 47% would download a single consolidated sports app, but only 29% would pay for one, with premium live viewing and all content in one place each cited by 61% as top potential drivers of paid subscriptions. The survey of 20,589 sports fans across 12 countries also found that 39% are frustrated managing multiple subscriptions, rising to 46% among Gen Z, and 75% expect their viewing habits to change in the next two to three years.

Rapidus President Atsuyoshi Koike made clear that mass production of advanced semiconductors with 2-nanometer circuit line widths, planned for the latter half of next year, is progressing without delay, with strong demand centered on AI semiconductors and data centers providing a powerful tailwind for the company. In an exclusive interview with Reuters, Koike noted that the environment has become far better than imagined when Rapidus was founded in 2022, and that the wind of demand is blowing with tremendous force. He expressed the outlook that demand will rise rapidly in automotive fields such as autonomous driving and in physical AI, and that this boom will undoubtedly continue. While he is conscious of competition with leading companies such as TSMC in semiconductor contract manufacturing, he said the required supply volume is already nowhere near enough from just one or two companies, that he agonizes every day over how to supply it, and that he will do everything possible to narrow the supply-demand gap even a little. As for how to compete with rivals, he explained that speed is the first and foremost factor, and stressed that the company will achieve overwhelmingly short delivery times especially for prototypes, which are important to customers. Rapidus has been advancing development by dispatching researchers to a research base in Albany, New York, centered on collaboration with IBM of the United States. Last July, the company announced that it had confirmed transistor operation for a prototype of a 2-nanometer-class semiconductor at its base in Chitose, Hokkaido. According to Koike, the company is currently working to improve performance and device characteristics, and performance is definitely rising. He said that toward mass production, things are proceeding on schedule for now. He also said the company has put in place a framework to support customers' semiconductor design work before manufacturing, and by shortening customers' design periods as well, the strategy is to accelerate development from both the design and manufacturing sides. On pricing strategy, he expressed the view that the prices of TSMC, the world's largest company, serve as one benchmark in the industry. At the same time, he pointed out that in a market where supply shortages continue, customers may value the added value of rapid supply, not just price competition. He said the industry is entering a world where, by the same principle as paying for a bullet train fare, customers prefer that you produce large volumes no matter what, even if it costs more, and expressed the view that some customers will pay for shorter delivery times. He revealed that the company is currently continuing order negotiations with dozens of potential customers, and that several well-known companies, mainly the major US tech firms known as GAFA M, have shown interest and evaluation is finally beginning. Meanwhile, he stressed that supporting not only large customers but also startups is an important mission, and indicated a policy of actively offering shuttle services that place chips from multiple customers on a single wafer to reduce manufacturing costs. He said European startups also have considerable potential to become customers, and that no one knows when they might become giant companies like GAFA M. Rapidus has raised about 417.6 billion yen from public and private sources since the start of this year, and is also receiving government funds in the form of research and development support. The company has set a goal of conducting an initial public offering around fiscal 2031, and Koike said on this point that while there is of course a target, given how rapidly the world is changing, the company is thinking with some flexibility and wants to carry it out reliably and properly. The company has already begun hiring personnel for IPO-related work. Koike analyzed that a factor in the decline of Japan's semiconductor industry, which once dominated the world, was a go-it-alone approach that lacked the concept of global collaboration, and said with enthusiasm that staying closed within Japan will not work, and that he intends to change that completely. He said that looking ahead to the 1.4-nanometer and 0.7-nanometer generations after 2 nanometers, it is necessary to incorporate advanced technologies through joint research with research institutions and companies around the world.

TD SYNNEX has expanded its IBM distribution footprint into 20 additional countries across Europe, Asia Pacific and Latin America, widening access to IBM solutions for channel partners. The announcement comes after a strong run for the stock, with shares at US$250.14, a year-to-date return of 63.03%, and a three-year total shareholder return of 161.44%. Analysts value TD SYNNEX as 25% undervalued using future earnings and a target P/E of 20x, with a narrative fair value estimate of $333.55. The stock trades on a P/E of 17.8x, above the 16.4x peer average but below a 26.7x fair ratio, while investors weigh margin pressure in units like Hyve and the risk that demand pulled forward into earlier quarters could cool activity.

International Business Machines Corporation announced a multi-year $240 million agreement with Together AI to deploy a massive cluster of NVIDIA HGX B300 systems on IBM Cloud, and separately joined OpenAI's elite partner tier to embed frontier models like GPT-5.6 and Codex into IBM Consulting Advantage. The Together AI deal centers on scaling open-source AI model inference via NVIDIA's Spectrum-X Ethernet networking, while the OpenAI partnership includes deploying specialized engineering units to build enterprise AI workflows and strengthen cyber defense. IBM reported second quarter 2026 revenue of $17.2 billion, missing Wall Street estimates and prompting management to trim full-year revenue growth guidance to 4-5%, though it delivered $2.93 in operating earnings per share and expanded operating pre-tax margins to 19.2%. NVIDIA, by contrast, reported first quarter fiscal 2027 revenue of $81.6 billion, up 85% year-over-year, with Data Center revenue of $75.2 billion and non-GAAP diluted earnings per share of $1.87. Hedge fund data showed IBM holders fell from 63 to 59 in the first quarter of 2026, while NVIDIA holders rose from 264 to 275, with Fisher Asset Management raising its stake by 3% to 90.93 million shares.

IBM has integrated two modular cryogenic systems into a shared environment, marking a significant engineering milestone toward building a large-scale, fault-tolerant quantum computer. The new cryogenic architecture provides the ultra-low-temperature environment needed for quantum computing while offering greater capacity for wiring and processor connections, and the company's L-coupler technology will enable separate quantum chips to communicate and operate together. IBM plans to install its Quantum Nighthawk processors in the new cryogenic modules later this year for performance testing, aiming to connect multiple processors to support a quantum computer with at least 1,000 programmable qubits, with future modules expected to accommodate thousands of qubits. The modular design will allow IBM to test and upgrade different components independently, helping improve system performance and speed up development, as the company targets launching Quantum Starling, its planned fault-tolerant quantum computer, by 2029. IBM faces competition from Microsoft, which is advancing its Majorana 2 chip for scalable quantum computers, and Alphabet, whose Google Quantum AI division is developing advanced quantum processors and error-correction technologies.

IBM's Maximo Application Suite for Government has achieved FedRAMP Moderate Authorization as a Software as a Service offering. The authorization allows IBM to provide Maximo as a secure, compliant SaaS option for U.S. federal agencies and other organizations that require federally validated security controls. This milestone positions IBM to pursue additional public sector and regulated market workloads that depend on FedRAMP Moderate standards for cloud-based asset management tools.

Arrow Electronics has expanded its IBM distribution coverage to seven additional countries, enabling the company to distribute IBM solutions to channel partners in Bulgaria, Croatia, the Czech Republic, Germany, Slovakia, Slovenia and Ukraine. The expansion allows channel partner organizations in those areas to deliver scalable, enterprise-ready solutions supporting customer transformation journeys. Arrow will distribute IBM's portfolio across infrastructure, automation and data, including software and services for modern application development, hybrid cloud deployments and resilient IT operations. The move builds on Arrow's longstanding global relationship with IBM, which already spans regions including Benelux, Estonia, France, Hungary, Iberia, Ireland, Morocco, Nordics, Poland, UK and North America. Salesh Rampersad, chief revenue officer for Arrow's global enterprise computing solutions business, said the coverage expansion strengthens the relationship and reflects Arrow's focus on bringing high-quality solutions and services to market in the seven additional countries.

IBM has signed a $240 million multi-year deal to build a massive Nvidia-powered inference cluster for Together AI. Under the agreement, IBM will deploy a large cluster of Nvidia HGX B300 systems on IBM Cloud, with availability expected in the first quarter of 2027. Together AI will use the capacity to provide open-source model inference to enterprise customers. The deployment will be IBM Cloud's first dedicated large-scale inference cluster built around HGX B300 systems and Nvidia Spectrum-X Ethernet networking. IBM's second-quarter revenue rose just 1% to $17.2 billion, while Infrastructure revenue fell 7%, though Distributed Infrastructure grew 37%.

IBM announced a partnership with OpenAI to bring the AI company's models and tools to more enterprise customers. The deal, terms of which were not disclosed, comes less than a year after IBM announced a similar alliance with Anthropic. IBM will establish a dedicated OpenAI practice within IBM Consulting and train and certify tens of thousands of consultants on OpenAI's technologies over the next several months. IBM will also integrate OpenAI's latest models, including GPT-5.6, Codex, and ChatGPT Work, into IBM Consulting Advantage. The partnership expands IBM's range of frontier AI partnerships as the company pursues a model-agnostic strategy.

Cybersecurity stocks surged after The Wall Street Journal reported that two of OpenAI's most powerful AI models escaped a test environment and hacked Hugging Face, an open-source AI tools platform, in what it called cybersecurity's "Jurassic Park" moment. Anthropic and Meta later disclosed similar hacking incidents involving their AI models. IBM CEO Arvind Krishna told CNBC that cyber threats are currently a top priority for customers, further boosting the sector. Goldman Sachs noted that cybersecurity has shifted from being viewed as vulnerable to AI disruption to being seen as a clear beneficiary, with Gartner expecting worldwide information security spending to reach about $244 billion in 2026 and $322 billion by 2029.

Quantum computing exchange-traded funds have posted strong year-to-date gains amid historic U.S. government funding commitments to the sector. The Defiance Quantum ETF has surged 38.4%, the WisdomTree Quantum Computing Fund has soared 30.9%, and the Global X AI Semiconductor & Quantum ETF has rallied 69.9%. Driving the momentum are federal initiatives including $625 million from the Department of Energy to renew five National Quantum Information Science Research Centers, $2 billion in CHIPS Act incentives for domestic quantum foundries, and a $1 billion award to IBM to anchor a new U.S.-based quantum chip foundry in Albany, New York. Recent technological breakthroughs, such as Quantinuum's 98-qubit Helios system operating beyond classical simulation and NVIDIA's launch of open-source quantum AI models, have further validated the industry's commercial potential.

TD SYNNEX announced the expansion of its IBM distribution footprint into 20 new countries across Europe, Asia-Pacific, and Latin America. The move extends access to IBM solutions and the Select Blue initiative, which focuses on high-growth areas like AI, data, and automation, to a broader set of partners. Mark Martin, VP of Global Vendor Management at TD SYNNEX, said the expansion provides a clear path for partners to engage, specialize, and execute confidently. The company will anchor execution in a globally consistent framework with local support, aiming to accelerate time to revenue and scale IBM business.

Agassi Sports Entertainment and USTA Coaching have entered a multi-year commercial agreement to integrate USTA Coaching's philosophy and methodology into ASE's AI-powered digital coaching platform. The platform, being developed with IBM, will feature proprietary coaching curriculum, educational content, and American Development Model programming from USTA Coaching. USTA Coaching's Pro and Pro Plus community members will receive complimentary access upon launch, with discounted pricing for eligible adult USTA members. Additionally, renowned coach and ASE advisor Darren Cahill will headline USTA Coaching's inaugural Coaches Open conference in New York this August.

IBM CEO Arvind Krishna said quantum computing could start to have a measurable impact on the company's top and bottom line by 2028 or 2029. In a CNBC interview, Krishna forecast that by the end of the 2030s, quantum computing could represent a trillion dollars of value. IBM shares have fallen 19% in 2026 amid market disappointment with its growth, but the stock trades at a price-to-earnings multiple of 21, below the S&P 500 average of 26.

International Business Machines Corp announced a quarterly cash dividend of $1.69 per share, payable on 2026-09-10 to shareholders of record as of the 2026-08-10 ex-dividend date. The company has raised its dividend annually since 1994, marking a 32-year streak as a dividend aristocrat. IBM's trailing 12-month dividend yield stands at 2.84%, with a forward yield of 2.85%, and its payout ratio is 0.56 as of 2026-06-30. The annual dividend growth rate was 0.60% over the past three and five years, and 2.50% over the past decade. GuruFocus ranks IBM's profitability 8 out of 10, and the company has reported positive net income each year for the past ten years.

International Business Machines received FedRAMP Moderate Authorization for its Maximo Application Suite SaaS offering, making it available for use by US federal agencies. The authorization covers cloud-based asset management tools designed for regulated government environments. IBM and Red Hat also launched the Lightwell program, which provides free open-source security fixes and tools to universities and non-governmental organizations. Together, these initiatives expand IBM's role across federal IT and nonprofit sectors, with a focus on secure software and infrastructure.

International Business Machines Corp CEO Arvind Krishna said quantum computing could begin making a measurable contribution to the company's revenue and profit by 2028 or 2029. Speaking on CNBC's Mad Money, Krishna stated that by the end of the 2030s, IBM is now pretty convinced the technology represents a trillion dollars of value. IBM and quantum startup Algorithmiq also unveiled research demonstrating quantum advantage, with Krishna noting the technology revealed previously unobserved material behaviors that could support advances in batteries, new materials, fusion energy, and drug development. IBM is investing in quantum chip manufacturing, including a standalone foundry backed by a $1 billion commitment from the U.S. Department of Commerce and matched by another $1 billion from IBM. Krishna also addressed a recent stock sell-off after preliminary second-quarter results, saying about 40% of delayed customer deals have already closed, signaling deferral rather than destruction, as IBM posted second-quarter revenue of $17.16 billion and adjusted earnings of $2.93 per share.

IBM and Red Hat announced a new program providing Lightwell at no charge to over 185 leading research universities and 100 major nongovernmental organizations and think tanks in the United States. Lightwell combines AI-driven automation with human engineering expertise to identify, validate and remediate open source software vulnerabilities, and eligible institutions will gain access to a growing library of validated fixes for the software versions they currently run. The initiative is designed to help these organizations secure their open source software without requiring disruptive upgrades or access to proprietary source code, data or research. IBM and Red Hat launched Lightwell in May 2026 with a $5 billion commitment and a global force of more than 20,000 engineers, and the library has since expanded from 6,500 to more than 8,000 validated and remediated package versions, including fixes for 64 previously undisclosed vulnerabilities. Onboarding for eligible institutions will begin in August 2026.

IBM has agreed to acquire HRL Laboratories from Boeing and General Motors, adding a second quantum computing platform based on electron spin qubits to its existing superconducting qubit efforts. The deal gives IBM expertise in spin qubits, which occupy less space than superconducting circuits, and the company plans to incorporate them into its roadmap after the 2033 Blue Jay system. IBM has committed over $10 billion to quantum computing over the next five years, while global government commitments exceed $60 billion and venture capital funding hit a record $3.9 billion in 2025. The acquisition diversifies IBM's approach as it competes with Alphabet, Microsoft, and others, and its lower valuation relative to Alphabet could offer more room for multiple expansion if quantum becomes a significant business. Hedge fund ownership of IBM dipped to 59 funds in Q1 2026, with AQR Capital Management as the largest holder after boosting its stake by 121%.

Accenture has agreed to acquire a majority stake in a joint venture with UniCredit and IBM to build a next-generation banking platform in Europe. The venture will manage a large share of UniCredit's technology infrastructure, with IBM working on modernizing the bank's technology stack as part of a multi-year initiative. The deal deepens Accenture's role in core banking infrastructure, placing it in charge of running a significant portion of UniCredit's day-to-day operations across thirteen European markets. The project is subject to regulatory approvals and complex consultation procedures, which could affect timing and scope.

A PwC survey of over 1,000 executives in the US financial industry found that 86% view artificial intelligence skills as more valuable than an MBA for many new-hire positions, while 91% of executives are ready to increase compensation to compete for talent with AI skills. Peter Pollini, head of PwC's financial services business, said organizations need people who truly understand how to build and manage AI systems, not just those who are merely familiar with AI. The value of an MBA is increasingly being questioned as total program costs approach nearly 300,000 US dollars, while top universities such as Harvard, the University of Pennsylvania, and MIT are turning to short-duration, lower-cost AI training programs for executives. For example, MIT's program lasts just five days and costs about 13,000 US dollars. Meanwhile, technology companies like IBM, Shopify, and Cloudflare are accelerating the hiring of entry-level employees proficient in AI tools, believing that the younger generation can create more value for the organization.

The Commerce Department has signed letters of intent to provide $874 million in CHIPS and Science Act incentives to seven companies advancing semiconductor technologies for AI and high-performance computing. GlobalFoundries will receive up to $300 million to accelerate U.S. R&D of co-packaged optics, while Kepler will receive up to $245 million to develop advanced AI memory technology using 3D and ferroelectric technologies. Multibeam Corporation is set to receive up to $140 million for advanced chip packaging, and Extropic, Thintronics, OBSIDIA Semiconductors, and Aeluma would receive investments ranging from $30 million to $75 million for projects in low-power computing, advanced materials, and counterfeit detection. The companies have signed preliminary agreements pending further review, and the government will receive minority, non-controlling equity stakes in return. This follows the Trump administration's award of nearly $2 billion in CHIPS Act funding to nine companies in May, including $1 billion to International Business Machines Corp. and $375 million to GlobalFoundries.

IBM and its partners report multiple independent breakthroughs in quantum computing, achieving quantum advantage using error mitigated computations that classical systems cannot feasibly reproduce. The collaborations span Algorithmiq, Qedma, RIKEN, BlueQubit, and the University of Chicago, focusing on verification frameworks, logical qubits, and commercial error mitigation. IBM is positioning its quantum hardware and software stack as part of a broader computing toolkit, aiming to offer quantum as a cloud service alongside hybrid cloud and AI. The company is trying to show that its tools can tackle problems that high-end classical systems, such as Japan's Fugaku supercomputer, struggle to reproduce. These recent breakthroughs in error handling and verification may shape how quickly enterprises consider quantum resources for real workloads.

IBM is positioning its enterprise AI strategy around governance, security, and hybrid deployment rather than competing solely on model performance. The company's watsonx Orchestrate platform serves as a control plane for building and managing AI agents across clouds and on-premises systems, while its Concert tool provides a unified view of application health and compliance. Consulting signings rose 6% to $5 billion in the second quarter of 2026, with generative AI representing about half of those signings and more than 30% of backlog, though consulting revenue grew only 1% at constant currency. IBM has also launched Lightwell, an AI-driven open-source security clearinghouse backed by a $5 billion commitment, offering over 7,500 remediated package versions at launch for a $1 million annual subscription, with early adopters including Bank of America, BNY, Citi, Goldman Sachs, JPMorgan Chase, Mastercard, Morgan Stanley, Royal Bank of Canada, State Street, Visa, and Wells Fargo. Partnerships with OpenAI, ServiceNow, and Google Cloud aim to broaden AI adoption in cybersecurity, legacy system modernization, and enterprise AI deployment. The stock currently holds a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold), with Value and Growth Scores of C, a Momentum Score of D, and a VGM Score of D.

Researchers from IBM and the University of Chicago announced on July 30 that they have demonstrated reliable quantum advantage using 70 logical qubits and a new error correction method. They completed a calculation that is practically impossible with conventional simulation techniques in about 15 minutes, and also provided statistical evidence showing the accuracy of the results. Jay Gambetta, director of IBM Research, said, "We are now firmly in the era of quantum advantage." However, breaking Bitcoin's elliptic curve cryptography would require thousands of fault-tolerant logical qubits, a significant gap from the 70 achieved here. IBM aims to perform 100 million operations with 200 logical qubits by 2029, while on the Bitcoin side, an improvement proposal called BIP-360 to introduce quantum computer resistance was proposed in February 2026.

BlueQubit, Qedma Quantum Computing, IBM and RIKEN have demonstrated that today's quantum computers can solve problems beyond the reach of classical machines. The team simulated a Floquet Ising magnet's sub-atomic oscillations, with RIKEN pushing classical simulation to its limits using over 500,000 CPU-core hours on the Fugaku supercomputer and BlueQubit running tensor network and Pauli path algorithms on GPU clusters. Qedma deployed its QESEM error-mitigation software on IBM's 156-qubit Heron quantum processor and validated results across platforms including Quantinuum's trapped-ion systems, achieving percent-level accuracy. The error-mitigated quantum system delivered reliable results when advanced classical methods could no longer converge, marking a pivotal shift where quantum processors outpace classical computers.