IBM Corp. on Thursday announced a broad alliance with OpenAI to help global enterprises install advanced artificial intelligence (AI) models and modern cybersecurity across core business operations.
Financial details of the deal were not disclosed, but the partnership comes as AI developers pivot from sheer model capabilities to securing large-scale corporate deployments.
Under the agreement, IBM will integrate OpenAI’s advanced technologies, including its GPT-5.6 model, Codex, and ChatGPT Work, directly into its IBM Consulting Advantage platform. The two companies will jointly engineer industry-specific solutions targeting regulated sectors such as financial services, telecommunications, government, and retail, alongside key administrative functions like procurement, finance, and human resources.
To support the rollout, IBM will launch a dedicated OpenAI Practice within IBM Consulting. The company plans to train and certify tens of thousands of existing consultants through the OpenAI Partner Network.
Additionally, IBM will deploy specialized Forward Deployed Experts (FDEs), which are embedded teams of engineers and consultants designed to work directly inside client organizations to tackle complex integration, application modernization, and legacy workflow overhauls.
“While enterprises are rapidly investing in AI, they are looking for practical ways to apply it across their core operations to deliver measurable business outcomes,” said Andy Baldwin, global senior vice president at IBM Consulting. “The challenge is not access to AI technologies — it’s integrating AI securely and at scale into complex enterprise environments and workflows.”
IBM’s push toward forward-deployed teams reflects a broader shift across the technology landscape. As a shortage of specialized talent creates an enterprise adoption bottleneck, rival tech giants — including Amazon.com Inc., Microsoft Corp., and Google — have heavily funded similar embedded engineering units. According to projections from research firm Gartner, more than 80% of technology providers are expected to introduce FDE programs by the end of the year to meet surging enterprise demand.
A central pillar of the collaboration focuses on cyber resilience. Building on their existing relationship through the OpenAI Daybreak Cyber Partner Program, the expanded deal integrates OpenAI’s models into IBM Autonomous Security, a multi-agent service designed for real-time threat response and mitigation against AI-driven cyberattacks.
Denise Dresser, OpenAI’s chief revenue officer, noted that leading organizations are moving toward making AI “a trusted part of how their business operates.”
The agreement also reinforces IBM’s strategy to maintain a model-agnostic approach. While developing its own proprietary Granite models, IBM has consistently positioned itself as a primary systems integrator through its watsonx platform, previously striking major alliances with Anthropic and Google Cloud.
The move follows a period in which IBM lowered its annual revenue forecast following weaker quarterly results despite CEO Arvind Krishna insistence that AI remains a long-term catalyst for corporate growth.