The best of IBM 2022
As we look back on the past year, these are the stories that will matter most for our future
Mayflower crossed the Atlantic, solo
Stories about transatlantic crossings, from Viking longships to luxury liners, have always been about the people on board. In 2022, the story of the Mayflower Autonomous Ship (MAS) was all about the vessel. With no human crew for the 3,349 miles between the UK and the US, the solar-powered MAS was piloted by an “AI Captain” decision engine that was trained with petabytes of data by teams in 10 countries. The mission: explore treacherous seas to gather previously unavailable critical data. The goal: study the impact of climate change and pollution to understand and protect our oceans — now and into the future.
IBM geared up for the future of semiconductors
IBM continued to prove its commitment to advancing innovations in semiconductors to reinvent the ways we live and work. In October, US President Joe Biden toured IBM’s Poughkeepsie, New York, facility to discuss the future of computing — including the recent CHIPS and Science Act and the company’s pledge to invest $20 billion toward critical technologies in its Hudson River Valley labs. Upstate at the NanoTech Complex, home of some of the world’s most advanced chip research, plans were announced for a new global partnership to manufacture the first 2nm node chip and other devices of tomorrow.
The scientific method got supercharged
By simple definition, “accelerated discovery” refers to the convergence of AI, hybrid cloud technologies and quantum computing to tackle problems and find solutions. In practice, accelerated discovery is the state of IBM Research’s art: new technologies pushing industries and society forward in amazing ways, uncovering solutions to complex problems at exponential speed and scale. With flexible, reusable foundation models, molecular optimization and generative models fast-tracking the process, the future is arriving faster than ever for business, healthcare, sustainable materials and more.
The z16 mainframe brought more AI and security to the cloud
Long recognized for security, performance and scalability, IBM mainframes are used by two-thirds of the Fortune 100 and a majority of the world's top banks, insurers, retailers and telcos. In 2022, the z16 took mainframe performance to a new level. On-chip AI inferencing and industry-first, quantum-safe technology enables businesses to process 25 billion secure transactions daily, protecting against “harvest now, decrypt later” schemes. And with a smaller energy footprint, the z16 is also a win for sustainability.
New Creators stepped into the spotlight
Passionate about celebrating creative tech visionaries wherever they live and work, IBM launched a series of profiles celebrating innovators who believe that humanity is no longer limited by what technology can do, but only by what we can imagine. From ethical hackers and biotech pioneers to STEM evangelists and farming revolutionaries, these New Creators are an inspiration to everyone looking for ways to use technology as a means to make the world a better place.
IBM Security made the world safer
Keeping your enterprise safe from threats comes down to one basic rule: be prepared. In 2022, IBM reinforced its commitment to data security with several advances, including the establishment of an IBM Security Command Center in India to help businesses manage the growing threat of cyberattacks in the Asia Pacific region. IBM also committed to provide security services to enhance the Department of Defense’s microelectronics supply chain, and acquired Randori, a hacker-led company that helps security teams find and resolve vulnerabilities.
Researchers laid the groundwork for a new type of AI processor
Over the past decade, we’ve learned much about the abilities and vast potential of artificial intelligence — and its limitations when deep learning models are run on a conventional CPU. So the IBM Research AI Hardware Center announced its work on a dedicated AI system-on-a-chip called an Artificial Intelligence Unit. Far less memory-intensive than CPUs, the AIU is being designed to streamline AI workflows without sacrificing accuracy. The goal, in less than a decade, is to handle modern AI’s statistics 1000x faster to better tackle real-world complexities such as predicting weather disasters and economic upheavals.
HBCUs expanded the cybersecurity talent pipeline
Building on a commitment to support Historically Black Colleges and Universities, IBM announced a collaboration with 20 HBCUs across 11 states to establish Cybersecurity Leadership Centers. The schools will have access to a customized cybersecurity experience with IBM at no cost, including curricula, cloud access, and immersive learning. As a worker shortage hinders efforts to confront growing global threats to data security, the collaboration promises to create talent for employers and opportunities for students.
Quantum-safe milestones were reached
One of IBM’s missions is to make the world quantum-safe. In July, three of the four algorithms chosen by the National Institute of Standards and Technology as post-quantum cryptography standardization candidates were developed by IBM. In September, IBM was named an initial member of GSMA’s Post-Quantum Telco Network Taskforce to help define quantum-safe cryptography protections for telecommunications. And in November, Vodafone became the first IBM Quantum Safe client to explore how to apply quantum-safe cryptography technology across its entire and diverse network infrastructure and systems.
Big business embraced sustainability
What if data could save the planet? Business media called 2021 “the year of ESG” and in 2022 sustainability became a global business priority. As a COP27 technology partner, IBM answered the call with more efficient hardware like the LinuxONE servers, carbon management software, and a new consulting practice dedicated to helping other enterprises reach their sustainability goals.
The IBM Osprey quantum processor took flight
It wasn’t very long ago that the notion of practical, useful quantum computing was science fiction. But the 433-qubit IBM Osprey processor, announced at the IBM Quantum Summit 2022 in November, brings us closer to a reality where quantum computers can tackle previously unsolvable problems. “Osprey” has the largest qubit count of any quantum processor, with the potential to run complex computations well beyond the capability of any classical computer. In comparison, the number of classical bits that would be necessary to represent a state on the IBM Osprey processor exceeds the total number of atoms in the known universe.
