IBM Watson Accelerates Global Expansion

NEW YORK, N.Y. - 07 Oct 2014: IBM (NYSE: IBM) is announcing significant milestones fueling adoption of Watson and cognitive computing cloud capabilities on a global scale. Watson is a groundbreaking platform that represents a new era of computing based on its ability to interact in natural language, process vast amounts of Big Data to uncover patterns and insights, and learn from each interaction.

On Tuesday, October 7, IBM Watson Group Senior Vice President Mike Rhodin demonstrates Watson at work in its Client Experience Center at its new global headquarters at 51 Astor Place in New York Citys Silicon Alley. Watson is a groundbreaking platform that represents a new era of computing based on its ability to interact in natural language, process vast amounts of Big Data to uncover new patterns and insights, and learn from each interaction. (Courtesy Jon Simon/Feature Photo Service for IBM)

According to technology research firm Gartner, Inc., smart machines will be the most disruptive change ever brought about by information technology, making people more effective and empowering them to "do the impossible."

IBM is advancing Watson technology around the world, announcing:

Watson client engagements across six continents and more than 25 countries, including South Africa, Australia, the U.K., Thailand, Canada and the U.S.

Watson is learning Spanish through a new partnership with Spains CaixaBank

The first wave of Watson Ecosystem Partners debuting new, in-market Watson-powered apps in industries such as travel, retail, IT services, healthcare and the non-profit sector

The opening of IBMs global Watson headquarters in New York Citys Silicon Alley, and five new Watson Client Experience Centers around the world

"Watson is bringing forward a new era of computing, enabling organizations around the globe to launch new businesses, redefine markets and transform industries," said Mike Rhodin, Senior Vice President, IBM Watson Group. "Watson is fueling a new market and ecosystem of clients, partners, developers, venture capitalists, universities and students. The next great innovations will come from people who are able to make connections that others dont see and Watson is making possible."

Clients Around the World Adopt Watson

Watson is gaining momentum as clients adopt cognitive technologies to transform how they interact with their customers. Since forming the IBM Watson Group in January of this year, Watson has been gaining momentum as new clients continue to implement Watson around the world:

ANZ Global Wealth (Australia) -- In the next few weeks, ANZ will be unveiling the new Watson Engagement Advisor Tool in its Sydney Grow' center and will also launch it more broadly to more than 400 financial planners. By opening up the Watson tool to the external environment, ANZ will be able to observe the types of questions coming from both customers and financial advisors in order to continue enhancing Watson's capabilities and insights. ANZs goal for Watson is to enable its financial advice team to deliver an improved advice process making it shorter and more efficient for the customer to receive a statement of financial advice, from weeks to just one session. The initial work of Watson is in the area of insurance and protection, and it will soon be expanded to cover the full wealth strategy including superannuation and investments.

Bumrungrad International Hospital (Thailand) -- Bumrungrad plans to use Watson to improve the quality of cancer care at its medical center in Bangkok and case evaluation at referral offices in 16 countries on four continents. In a five-year commitment, Bumrungrad will use IBM Watson for Oncology, developed with Memorial Sloan Kettering (MSK), one of the world's leading cancer centers. The innovative system will help Bumrungrad doctors plan the most effective treatments for cancer patients based on each patient's profile, medical evidence, published research, and the extensive clinical expertise of MSK. Watson will analyze vast quantities of this information and present a summary of findings relevant to each patient case, including treatment options based on National Comprehensive Cancer Network (NCCN) guidelines. Headquartered in Bangkok, Bumrungrad is the largest private hospital in Southeast Asia and one of the world's most popular medical destinations. Nearly half of its 1.1 million patients annually are from 190 countries.

CaixaBank (Spain) -- CaixaBank and IBM are teaming up to develop a cognitive system built on Watson to understand Spanish. With the aim of providing best in class customer service, CaixaBank is a pioneer in the banking industry, including the world's first deployment of IBM PCs at bank branches, the creation of the world's first contactless ATM and the first app store for financial applications launched by a bank. This announcement is another milestone for CaixaBank, as the first organization worldwide working with IBM to teach Spanish to Watson. This agreement has been developed under a collaboration framework between the Digital Innovation Center of CaixaBank and IBM.

Deakin University (Australia) -- In a world first, Deakin University will tap the power of Watson to develop an online student engagement advisor. The student advisor application will deliver 24/7 instant online access via the web and mobile devices for the university's 50,000 students. Ultimately, the advisor will also assist future students and staff working with students on everything from the simplest questions to tailored, personalized responses. Over the coming months, Watson will consume thousands of pages of Deakins unstructured data contained in documents, presentations, brochures and online to ensure users receive consistent, high quality responses to the thousands of queries. The questions received will represent a bro

LINK:	http://www-03.ibm.com/press/uk/en/pressrelease/45069.wss...
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