IBM's Watson question answering supercomptuer is an impressive bit of kit. The machine has competed very well against humans in many areas, including on the game show Jeopardy. IBM has announced a new API that makes the Watson question answering machine available as a service.
Apple has been one of the most valuable companies in the world for a long time. The list of the most valuable brands in all the world has been published again by Forbes and Apple is at the top of that list for the third time. Despite Apple remaining at the top, the list has shuffled compared to the last time we talked about it in September. In September, Apple held the top spot, Google was in second place, Coca-Cola was in third, IBM was fourth, and Microsoft was in the fifth-place spot.
Dual form factor authentication has been used for a long time to add an additional layer of security both online and in the real world. Dual factor authentication requires a user to offer some sort of physical token along with something they know such as a password to access systems secured using the technique. Technology giant IBM has announced a new dual factor authentication system that is NFC-based and intended to help users keep online accounts and services secure.
Computer makers are focusing more and more on design these days with their products. Computers are no longer a beige square box, but almost pieces of art that need to look good sitting on a desk. Yesterday, the IDSA handed out its International Design Excellence Awards (IDEA for short), and companies like Dell, HP, IBM, and Vizio took home some of the prizes with their creations.
It seems no job is safe in this economy, as it's being reported that IBM has begun its first round of layoffs in the US, starting with what is said to be at least 1,300 employees spread out amongst various departments at the company. The layoffs are said to be a part of a major restructuring plan for IBM that will cost around $1 billion.
In order to provide its customers with improved software development, IBM has acquired UrbanCode, which is a provider of tools that are suited for rapid software development called DevOps. UrbanCode has provided their services to many big companies, like Wells Fargo, Fidelity, Walmart, Disney, and Expedia.
Researchers from IBM have created a very impressive and affordable new photovoltaic system that is capable of concentrating solar radiation up to 2000 times. The system is also capable of converting 80% of incoming solar radiation into useful energy. Other than simply creating solar electricity, the system also has two other very important capabilities.
It's been roughly nine years since the time that IBM sold off its consumer PC business to Lenovo, and now it looks like IBM's server business is the next to go for the company. It's reported that IBM and Lenovo are in talks to make a deal that would see Lenovo buy IBM's x86 server business for at least $2.5 billion.
IBM's infamous Watson supercomputer is making its way to the classroom after appearing on Jeopardy! a while back. IBM announced today that they'll be building another Watson supercomputer and will be giving it to the Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute to be the first university to receive a Watson supercomputer. Other universities are planned to get one in the future.
I've always thought that the IBM Watson supercomputer was a very cool device indeed. In fact, I thought Watson was such an interesting machine that I even watched the episodes of Jeopardy where Watson was a contestant. I think it's the only time I ever watched Jeopardy.
IBM has offered up its annual list of five innovations that will change our lives within five years. IBM calls the list the "IBM 5 in 5." The list covers innovations that IBM believes that the potential change the way people work, live, and interact over the next five years.
IBM has developed a light-based data transfer system delivering more than 25Gbps per channel, opening the door to chip-dense slabs of processing power that could speed up server performance, the internet, and more. The company's research into silicon integrated nanophotonics addresses concerns that interconnects between increasingly powerful computers, such as mainframe servers, are unable to keep up with the speeds of the computers themselves. Instead of copper or even optical cables, IBM envisages on-chip optical routing, where light blasts data between dense, multi-layer computing hubs.
