ARMONK, N.Y., May 9, 2024 /CNW/ -- IBM (NYSE: IBM) today announced the availability of IBM Copilot Runway, a new offering from IBM Consulting designed to help enterprises create, customize, deploy and manage copilots including Copilot for Microsoft 365. With the new offering, clients will be able to seamlessly integrate copilots' generative AI into their organizations in order to enhance productivity and drive business success. IBM Consulting has also formed a dedicated practice of consultants with Microsoft copilot skills, credentials and expertise to guide clients on their AI transformation journey.

As part of the new offering, IBM will work with clients to build custom copilots that can be tailored to fit the needs of specific business scenarios and efficiently deployed to help reduce the time and effort often required for implementations. IBM will initially focus on helping clients across priority use cases, including customer and field service, employee experience, and procurement and finance – as well as specific industries, like financial services, retail and CPG, government, and supply chain. These use cases will include:

• The Procurement and Finance Contract Copilot which assists specialists in extracting valuable insights from contracts.
• The Customer Service and Field Service Copilot which gives agents and technicians access to self-service options and a time-saving generative AI search.
• The Employee Experience Copilot which is designed to enhance employee engagement.                                                                            

IBM and Microsoft already serve clients across a variety of industries with a range of AI solutions and services. In fact, IBM Consulting worked with Virgin Money to develop and launch Redi, a conversational virtual assistant that helps credit card customers in the Virgin Money credit card app. Redi, powered by Virgin Money's suite of Microsoft Copilots, is a testament to the power of partnership.

"Our customers tell us how much they enjoy interacting with Redi in the Credit Card app," said Adam Paice, Head of Digital Proposition, Virgin Money. "Our partnership with IBM has helped us to get the most out of Microsoft Copilot to find a balance between innovation and control."  

IBM Consulting is also scaling its Microsoft copilot capabilities and capacity across its network of Global Innovation Centers on each continent. For example, these capabilities are being used to co-create solutions with clients at IBM Consulting's new IBM-Microsoft Experience Zone in Bangalore, India – a first of its kind in our collaboration.

At the Experience Zone, clients from around the world and across industries are working together with IBM Consulting in various technology stations to co-ideate and co-create generative AI-powered solutions – leveraging Microsoft technologies, including Copilot. Later this year, IBM Consulting plans to open additional IBM-Microsoft Experience Zones in Romania, U.K. and U.S., where clients in these regions can explore the power of Copilot. In addition IBM and Microsoft hosted a second client-focused hackathon with 800 participants, including clients and experts to build solutions leveraging Microsoft copilot – with winners to be announced this quarter.

"As IBM and Microsoft strengthen our partnership, we're poised to empower more clients with Microsoft Copilot, supercharging productivity and boosting creativity through the power of generative AI," said John Granger, Senior Vice President, IBM Consulting. "Our dedicated IBM Consulting Microsoft practice, along with Copilot-focused Experience Zones around the world, help us meet clients where they are and bring them the right generative-AI-enabled solutions for their businesses."

"Clients need the right partners and technology to scale AI responsibly across the enterprise," said Dinis Couto, General Manager of Global Partner Solutions for Microsoft. "With IBM's dedicated group of Microsoft Copilot experts, we're confident we can help more clients unlock the full potential of generative AI for their businesses."

IBM purchased Copilot for Microsoft 365 for its practitioners. To continue building on the partnership, IBM has also invested in growing its team of experts and capabilities through acquisitions, like Neudesic and Bluetab.

IBM Consulting practitioners work with a range of leading AI software technologies and multiple models from both IBM and its strategic partners like Microsoft. IBM data and AI consultants typically employ multiple models, each applied to a specific use case. Different models can be optimized for specific tasks, enhancing performance and efficiency.

Microsoft is a trademark of Microsoft Corporation in the United States, other countries, or both.

About IBM
IBM is a leading provider of global hybrid cloud and AI, and consulting expertise. We help clients in more than 175 countries capitalize on insights from their data, streamline business processes, reduce costs and gain the competitive edge in their industries. More than 4,000 government and corporate entities in critical infrastructure areas such as financial services, telecommunications and healthcare rely on IBM's hybrid cloud platform and Red Hat OpenShift to affect their digital transformations quickly, efficiently and securely. IBM's breakthrough innovations in AI, quantum computing, industry-specific cloud solutions and consulting deliver open and flexible options to our clients. All of this is backed by IBM's long-standing commitment to trust, transparency, responsibility, inclusivity and service.

Visit www.ibm.com for more information.

Media Contact:
IBM
Carolyn Batt
[email protected]

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