Can IBM's Agentic AI Collaboration With e& Boost Its Global Lead?

International Business Machines Corporation IBM has partnered with global technology group e& to build an enterprise-grade agentic AI foundation, starting with policy, risk, and compliance.  The collaboration expands IBM’s enterprise-grade agentic AI solutions while strengthening its role as a trusted AI partner for businesses worldwide.

IBM’s newly introduced agentic AI solution is powered by its watsonx Orchestrate. The platform offers more than 500 tools and customizable AI agents that help employees and auditors quickly find, understand and act on legal, regulatory, and compliance information. The solution is combined with IBM OpenPages and the broader watsonx portfolio to deliver clear, traceable, and well-governed responses.

Beyond chatting, watsonx Orchestrate allows AI agents to reason, manage tasks, and work with enterprise systems while following governance rules. It streamlines compliance workflows, reduces response times, and enables 24/7 self-service access across the organization. It also supports hybrid environments, providing governed, explainable AI that runs securely on customer-managed infrastructure.

IBM recently announced that it is also working with Datavault AI to deliver enterprise-grade AI at the edge using the SanQtum AI platform and its watsonx portfolio, helping businesses run powerful, secure AI closer to where data is generated. Building on IBM’s watsonx next-generation AI and data platform, the company has formed various strategic AI partnerships, establishing itself as a global leader in enterprise AI.

How Are Competitors Performing in the AI Market?

IBM faces competition from Oracle Corporation ORCL and Microsoft Corporation MSFT. Oracle has launched an AI Data Platform and Agent marketplace to help businesses connect AI with their data and apps for faster, governed AI adoption. The company expands its AI services across cloud regions and adds advanced AI tools to its database and cloud offerings, boosting its enterprise AI presence. Oracle has partnered with NVIDIA Corporation NVDA to integrate AI tools into Oracle Cloud, enabling businesses to build and run advanced applications quickly.

Microsoft is investing billions to expand AI data centers and cloud capacity globally. It is also partnering with companies and launching programs to help businesses adopt AI and accelerate enterprise AI growth. Microsoft has teamed up with PwC to use AI and Copilot to help businesses adopt AI and transform industries worldwide.

IBM’s Price Performance, Valuation & Estimates

IBM shares have gained 36.3% over the past year compared with the industry’s growth of 94.3%.

From a valuation standpoint, IBM trades at a forward price-to-sales ratio of 4.05, below the industry average.

Earnings estimates for 2025 have remained stable at $11.38 over the past 60 days, while the same for 2026 have rose 0.3% to $12.19.

IBM currently carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.

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This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).

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