I.B.M. is taking steps to expand artificial intelligence into something that is useful in the commercial sense through Watson. The new Watson projects will encompass elements of commercialization, research initiatives and other technologies that will lead I.B.M. and other companies forward. The technology expansion takes Watson into new directions and has the company excited about the business opportunities that will follow.
The company’s market focus includes corporations, science laboratories and government agencies, mainly to help manage the growing number of data sources available through the web, patent filings, medical images, social networks, mobile devices and other sources. At Almaden Research Center in San Jose, California, Wall Street analysts have seen demonstrations of how Watson can aid in drug development, inventing recipes for food dishes, and predicting when machinery will need maintenance. The new market, now called Big Data, includes several technologies with a focus on artificial intelligence.
John Baldoni, senior vice president for technology and science at GlaxoSmithKline, contacted I.B.M. once he recognized the potential that Watson could provide in aiding the sorting out of wrong answers for drug development after watching Watson’s “Jeopardy” appearance. Mr. Baldoni says improving the odds could payoff economically and medically. Watson projects are not earning big money yet, but according to Frank Gens, chief analyst for IDC, I.B.M. has extensive experience in the industry and can produce a momentum that other technology suppliers cannot. I.B.M. projects $16 billion in revenue from Big Data work by 2015.
There are a number of competitors in the Big Data market industry, including Microsoft, Oracle, SAP, and the SAS institute. Like I.B.M., these companies are cutting costs by using data-mining technology, developing new products and creating financial, retail, manufacturing, health care, and banking opportunities. Mr. Gens said that the market for Watson will increase in light of competition from consumer offerings, like Apple’s Siri and Google. Applications for smartphones and tablets using Watson may be potential new offerings as I.B.M partners with some of its major customers to create new technology for the future.
