IBM is acquiring data infrastructure company Confluent for eleven billion dollars in cash. This strategic move aims to strengthen IBM’s data and automation offerings as businesses increasingly shift their technology operations to the cloud and adopt artificial intelligence.
The tech giant will pay thirty-one dollars per Confluent share. This price represents a premium of approximately fifty percent over the company’s closing share value this past Friday, prior to news of the agreement.
Confluent provides a platform that enables enterprises to manage real-time data streams. Demand for this capability has surged as more companies develop and deploy AI products, which require extensive back-and-forth data processing for inferencing tasks.
IBM stated that Confluent will complement its existing portfolio of data and automation products. The acquisition is also expected to enhance IBM’s offerings in the areas of AI, automation, data, and consulting. The company anticipates the deal will contribute positively to its EBITDA and free cash flow within two years of its closure.
This acquisition marks the latest in a series of deals by IBM as it seeks to capitalize on the AI boom. At eleven billion dollars, the Confluent purchase would be IBM’s largest acquisition in years. It follows IBM’s acquisition of HashiCorp in 2024.
In recent months, IBM has been actively expanding its AI capabilities. This past October, the company signed a deal with AI lab Anthropic to integrate the Claude large language model into some IBM products. IBM has also partnered with AMD to develop a new computing architecture that combines quantum systems with AI-specialized chips. Furthermore, IBM acquired data analysis startup Seek AI this past June.