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IBM has announced plans to invest $150 billion in the United States over the next five years to boost the economy and cement its position as a global technological leader. More than $30 billion will be allocated towards research and development, focusing on mainframes and quantum computing.
Strengthening US innovation through mainframes and quantum computing
Mainframes are powerful back-end servers that organisations use to process large amounts of data and run critical applications. IBM, which manufactures mainframes in New York, said that more than 70% of global transactions by value currently run through its US-made mainframes. Big Blue company unveiled its latest mainframe earlier this month, explicitly designed to support AI features.
IBM has been advancing quantum computing for years and anticipates significant breakthroughs this decade. Its first error-corrected quantum system is expected by 2029. This month, it was announced as a participant in the Quantum Benchmarking Initiative, a government-led program aimed at developing standardised metrics to assess the performance of quantum technologies accurately.
In this week’s announcement, Big Blue frames quantum computing as a technological breakthrough that will “transform American competitiveness, jobs, and national security.” The patriotic tone doesn’t end there, as a statement from IBM CEO Arvind Krishna said that the company has been “focused on American jobs and manufacturing since (its) founding 114 years ago.
“With this investment and manufacturing commitment we are ensuring that IBM remains the epicenter of the world’s most advanced computing and AI capabilities,” he added.
SEE: IBM Completes HashiCorp Acquisition for $6.4 Billion, Expanding Hybrid Cloud Offerings
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US investments could strengthen tech giants’ ties with Trump
Since President Donald Trump assumed office, several tech companies have announced US expansions.
In the press conference for the TSMC investment, Trump said that there are still “many (more companies) that want to announce” construction projects stateside. Such companies could absorb the business of foreign competitors in the chip, cloud, and other hardware markets, especially with new tariffs driving up import costs.
While these investments would appear to curry favour with Trump, a number of them were planned before his inauguration. However, the framing of IBM’s announcement, which highlights it is “one of the nation’s largest technology employers,” suggests an effort to publicly align with the administration’s priorities.
Indeed, shares in many of the tech giants plummeted after Trump announced sweeping reciprocal tariffs earlier this month, demonstrating the impact his decisions can have on their bottom lines. Electronic products are currently exempt from the 10% global baseline tariff and the reciprocal tariffs imposed on countries with which the US has a trade deficit. Still, Trump has stated that these exemptions are temporary and that a bespoke semiconductor tariff will be enforced in the “very near future.”
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