Telefonica Tech, the enterprise division of Spain-based telecommunications operator Telefonica, has signed an agreement with IBM to develop AI solutions for businesses in its home market. The company will use the U.S. company's Watsonx AI and data platform as the foundation for all of its work, which will include a new multi-cloud AI management platform, a new AI “use case office,” new market-ready AI product prototypes, and a suite of training and certifications to scale digital transformation projects in the private and public sectors.
The new platform, called SHARK.X, is already complete. It will host a range of IBM hardware and software components and will integrate with IBM and third-party cloud environments. IBM said its Fusion human-computer interaction (HCI) system for running edge-based Kubernetes enterprise applications on Red Hat's OpenShift container platform “stands out” as a key feature. Telefónica Tech's “technology inspiration center,” La Cabana, will deploy the open SHARK.X system to support the development of new AI solutions for the enterprise.
The new use case office will be made up of staff from both companies to develop customer pilots. IBM will provide experts from its “client engineering” consulting (“co-creation”) division. Telefónica Tech will also provide specialized services to define and integrate edge systems for customers. The new office will “facilitate and coordinate the definition and development of use cases, proofs of concept and minimum viable products (MVPs),” the pair said. The briefs will range from traditional and generative AI, to analytics and data governance solutions.
Telefonica Tech is also responsible for regulatory and ethical compliance. The deal will initially be limited to Spain, the company said. The two companies have already jointly released new generative AI solutions for enterprise customers, including simplifying and accelerating code generation for IT applications, automating processes and incidents, cognitive assistants in industrial operations, advice and customer service, analytics, and the processing and management of audiovisual content and text documents, the company said.
The two companies have been working together for many years (“a history of strong collaboration”), they said, and are also working on Telefónica Tech's multi-cloud TROS service, virtual AI assistants for customer service, and blockchain-based supply chain IoT. A recent IBM survey found that almost half of the companies already working on AI in Spain have accelerated their investments in the technology in the past 24 months. “This highlights the need to provide the business environment with tools and solutions that drive the digital transformation journey, in which AI plays a key role,” they said.
Elena Gil Rizasoain, Director of the AI and Data Business Unit at Telefónica Tech, said: “This new collaboration with IBM will help advance the many benefits of traditional and generative AI, as well as proper data management in the business world. By combining the knowledge of both teams, we will continue to build use cases to create more efficient and sustainable businesses.”
Adolfo Hernández Pulido, Technology Managing Director, Telefónica, IBM, said: “Together we are accelerating the digital transformation of the Spanish business community, enabling the development of innovative technology solutions that help companies adapt to the AI era. Analytics, data governance and the successful adoption of AI are key elements of business success today, and we both share a commitment to helping companies achieve this.”
