IBM announced on Monday (18 December) that it would be purchasing Software AG’s enterprise integration platforms for $2.33bn, as the tech giant looks to expand its artificial intelligence (AI) and cloud offerings.
IBM will be acquiring Germany-based Software AG’s StreamSets and webMethods platforms.
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The two platform’s provide application integration, data integration and application programming interface management.
“The opportunity to bring the StreamSets and webMethods teams together with IBM to innovate in building the future of hybrid cloud and next-generation AI solutions for the enterprise is uniquely compelling,” Christian Lucas, chairman of the supervisory board of Software AG said,
The transaction is currently expected to be completed in the second quarter of 2024.
In May, IBM CEO Arvind Krishna said that the US tech giant anticipates pausing hiring for positions that it believes AI will eventually take over.
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By GlobalDataIn an interview with Bloomberg, Krishna said the company will suspend or pause hiring for back-office functions such as human resources.
The company employs some 26,000 people in these non-customer-facing roles, Krishna said.
“I could easily see 30% of that getting replaced by AI and automation over a five-year period,” he added.
The news comes as the number of US patents have steadily been increasing since 2019 but peaked in 2022, according to GlobalData’s patent database.
In 2023, as of 18 December, the number of patents filed in the US totalled 59,000, this was a slight drop from 2022 which saw the number of patents filed reach 62,000.
The global technology industry experienced a 10% decline in the number of AI patent applications in Q3 2023 compared with the previous quarter.
The largest share of AI related patent filings in the technology industry in Q3 2023 was in China with 45%, followed by the US (25%) and South Korea (6%).
Analysis of patenting activity by companies shows that Samsung Group filed the most AI patents within the technology industry in Q3 2023. The company filed AI related patents in the quarter, compared with 1081 in the previous quarter.
It was followed by Alphabet with 614 AI patent filings, International Business Machines (558 filings), and Ping An Insurance (Group) Company of China (510 filings) in Q3 2023.
Our signals coverage is powered by GlobalData’s Thematic Engine, which tags millions of data items across six alternative datasets — patents, jobs, deals, company filings, social media mentions and news — to themes, sectors and companies. These signals enhance our predictive capabilities, helping us to identify the most disruptive threats across each of the sectors we cover and the companies best placed to succeed.
