Roughly fifteen years ago, it appeared IBM roared into its next generation of growth somewhere around the year 2011. That was when their new Watson played Jeopardy on TV. This was the first time, outside of a Hollywood sci-fi movie that the world saw AI in action, and it was very impressive. Over the next few years with their IBM World of Watson held in Las Vegas, they grew. They put on an impressive event. It looked like they were headed for the stars. Then reality set in.
Watson was AI, even though IBM chose not to say so. I believe that was part of the mistake the first time around. The marketplace was simply not ready yet for AI or for Watson, yet.
To tell you the truth, the IBM World of Watson was one of the most impressive and exciting events I have ever seen, and I have seen quite a few of them over 40 years. I was invited to be part of the spectacle and was frankly blown away.
Then the unthinkable happened. Watson slipped through IBMs fingers. It faded away as quickly as it showed up on our collective doorstep. They ultimately sold off parts of this amazing and incredible display of technology to others around the world.
IBM started to rebuild Watsonx, which is AI, and Quantum
Then, IBM went quiet, strategized and started to rebuild. Now, they seem to be coming back, although things are different.
A decade ago, IBM caught the attention of the world. That was when the marketplace was quieter.
Now, it’s a noisy and chaotic marketplace with countless different AI technologies and everyone is screaming for attention.
In this crazy marketplace, IBM is too quiet. Times have changed. Now is when IBM needs to realize this before it’s too late and they let Watsonx and Quantum slip through their fingers once again.
IBM needs to be seen and heard in noisy and distracting marketplace
If they are interested, I can tell them where they went wrong last decade. It was so obvious to me from the start. This time I want them to succeed. AI is in the very early stages, so know is when it is important to flex their muscles.
In the past couple years, AI has burst back onto the scene with countless corporate leaders like OpenAI, Google, Microsoft, Amazon, Facebook or Meta and countless others.
Today, it seems like the world has finally caught onto AI. However, they still do not know what to expect, for better and for worse.
This is when the world needs a leader in artificial intelligence. A way for them to know what to expect and how their world will change.
A few companies have the power to fill that void. Will IBM become one of those AI and Quantum leaders?
After the IBM Watson mistake, they are now rebuilding with Watsonx and Quantum
A funny thing seems to be happening, behind the scenes. IBM Watson was reborn as Watsonx. And IBM Quantum is also moving very quickly.
That being said, not enough people know about it.
Last time around, IBM used PR and Twitter (x) to pump the hell out of Watson during the last decade.
That worked for a while, but “X” was new, and no one really knows how to make the magic happen.
AI and Quantum are two, big, new growth sectors
This time, while everyone else is screaming to the rooftops, IBM seems gun shy. This is the time they need PR and Twitter (X) and LinkedIn and Google search more than ever before.
Last decade, IBM was on the right track, but it didn’t work. Now, they started to refocus on the new Watsonx and Quantum.
Bottom line is, these are perhaps the two biggest technology advancements we have seen in our lifetimes.
Even bigger than the iPhone and Android smartphone revolution starting roughly 18 years ago.
In fact, AI and Quantum will be many times larger and more impactful compared to the wireless world and smartphones.
New CEO Arvind Krishna reviving IBM with Watsonx and Quantum
Our world is on the brink of a major rewrite. This U-turn happened under the leadership of new CEO Arvind Krishna.
Krishna says Quantum will indeed be not only a new technology but will develop into a foundational technology. He also says by the end of the decade, advances in both coherence times and error-correction will accelerate growth these two sectors.
And that is exactly where he is positioning IBM to lead. They are focusing on improvements in Quantum hardware. They are also focused on extending qubit coherence times dramatically.
Today, their focus seems both on AI and Quantum, which are not directly related, but potentially connected technologies. Just think of what Google is doing with DeepMind and OpenAI with ChatGPT technology and a growing number of others.
Elon Musk says we have entered Event Horizon and Singularity is next
Elon Musk says we have already entered the “event horizon” for AI. This is a measurement of how close to the “singularity” we can safely get. Once we pass the event horizon, we can no longer escape.
“Event Horizon” was a term coined in the 1950s with regard to Black Holes. It is the doorway of sorts. In theory, once we cross over into the event horizon, we are trapped and cannot break free.
With regard to AI, singularity is when we cross over that line in the sand and the technology writes its own software. We begin to lose control over its advancement.
This has never happened before, so we are really only guessing what will happen at that point.
Why is IBM not using PR and X the same as last time?
IBM CEO Krishna is taking the company in bold, new directions. The timing seems right.
At some point, in the near future I believe, IBM will start to fuel the fire and start acting like a leader in both AI and Quantum computing.
These are two of what may indeed become the fastest growing and most consequential new technologies we have ever seen in our lifetimes.
That being said, the marketplace is very loud and chaotic today. That means players need to punch their way through the noise and chaos to be seen and heard.
IBM needs to shout about their technology in a loud and distracting marketplace
Over time, IBM has gone through many ups and downs over their history.
However, today the marketplace is louder and noisier than ever before. Companies need to punch their way through the noise just to be noticed.
Just having a strong brand name is not enough. Every company must punch their way onto the map.
We don’t yet know what the future holds, but IBM is one of the companies who in my opinion may be too big, too important, to fail.
IBM could become a leader in AI and Quantum. If they do the right things starting now. There will be many. I would hate to see IBM let this growth opportunity slip through their fingers.
That being said, IBM needs to punch their way through the noise and be noticed. They are not doing so today. Not yet anyway. Can they? Will they? We will see.
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