By Christine Ji
While many AI partnerships have focused on consumer applications, IBM and Anthropic will be looking to grow enterprise adoption
IBM’s stock rose to an intraday all-time high on Tuesday.
International Business Machines Corp. is the latest company to hop into the artificial-intelligence dealmaking frenzy – this time with Anthropic.
On Tuesday, IBM (IBM) announced that it would be integrating Anthropic’s Claude model directly into internal and external development tools with the purpose of advancing AI-enabled enterprise infrastructure.
Investors cheered the move to develop an enterprise-AI product, sending the stock up nearly 4% to $300 and on track to close at a record high.
IBM has integrated Claude into its software-testing application, saying in a press release that the large language model will help with “advanced task-generation capabilities for enterprise software,” with the intent to expand the integration to other products.
Early testing among 6,000 internal users resulted in average productivity gains of 45%, delivering cost savings and maintaining code quality, the company said.
The partnership also focuses on creating standards for the design, deployment and management of enterprise-AI agents, signaling a move beyond chatbots toward autonomous systems.
IBM and Anthropic’s partnership follows other high-profile AI deals, such as Advanced Micro Devices Inc.’s (AMD) announcement earlier this week that it would be selling its graphics processing units to OpenAI.
But IBM is pursuing “enterprise-ready AI” instead of AI infrastructure, an area of the AI trade that has received less interest from investors. The adoption of enterprise-AI solutions hasn’t been as widespread as that of consumer-facing chatbots, largely due to the strict privacy and security controls required by large-scale businesses.
However, this deal could be a sign of a shift in the enterprise space. IBM and Anthropic’s focus on creating AI deployment standards may be the key to unlocking corporate AI adoption. It’s an initiative well suited for Anthropic, as the company has built its brand on AI safety, training its models with a set of principles it calls “Constitutional AI.”
IBM is no stranger to AI technologies, as its Watsonx AI platform – which includes a family of models for business named Granite – has seen increasing adoption. The stock has rallied over 36% in 2025 on the back of AI enthusiasm and robust free cash flow.
Bringing in Anthropic’s expertise gives the company increased visibility and credibility. High-profile partnerships can signal to investors that IBM is “proactively driving innovation,” Brianne Lynch, head of market insight at secondaries marketplace EquityZen, said in comments shared with MarketWatch. Tapping into Anthropic’s AI model can also help IBM reduce research and development costs while offering customers access to cutting-edge products, Lynch added.
The partnership also marks increased involvement in the enterprise space by Anthropic, which on Monday announced a partnership with Deloitte to roll out industry-specific AI solutions.
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-Christine Ji
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10-07-25 1125ET
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