IBM, Lenovo strengthen AI alliance

IBM and Lenovo have announced plans to expand their strategic technology partnership to accelerate the adoption of generative AI in Saudi Arabia, as global AI spending is projected to surpass $300 bn by 2026.

The disclosure was made in a statement made available on Monday as the two companies unveiled their collaboration at LEAP 2025, a major technology conference.

Building on their 20-year partnership, the American tech giant and computer maker will jointly deliver AI solutions that integrate IBM’s watsonx portfolio and Lenovo’s infrastructure.

The initiative will also incorporate the Saudi Data and Artificial Intelligence Authority’s open-source Arabic Large Language Model, aimed at enhancing AI-driven services in the Kingdom.

According to the companies, these AI solutions will help government agencies and businesses leverage AI to improve public services, detect fraud, enhance public safety, modernise IT operations, and optimise customer service.

IDC forecasts that annual global spending on AI-centric systems will exceed $300bn by 2026, with Saudi organisations increasingly investing in AI-driven innovations as they prepare for a future dominated by artificial intelligence.

President of EMEA, Infrastructure Solutions Group at Lenovo, Giovanni Di Filippo, said, “We’re pleased to deepen our partnership to bring IBM’s fit-for-purpose generative AI offerings together with Lenovo’s infrastructure solutions for both on-premises and cloud use to provide customers in Saudi Arabia with solutions designed to meet their unique needs in this fast-paced growing market.”

Organisations in Saudi Arabia are currently able to access ALLaM through WatsonX, use advanced AI capabilities to train, tune, and deploy ALLaM, and run their AI workloads on Lenovo infrastructure for both on-premises and cloud use cases.

The new solutions are expected to provide additional ways for clients to harness the power of generative AI with an approach based on transparency, trust, and choice.

Regional Vice President, IBM Saudi Arabia, Ayman AlRashed, stated, “IBM and Lenovo have a rich history of joint innovation and partnership that spans two decades.

“We look forward to this new collaboration to bring together Lenovo’s infrastructure offerings and IBM’s AI portfolio, which utilises small, efficient, open-source models targeted for specific use cases and geographic requirements. Together we will drive even greater value for our mutual clients in the Kingdom.”