15 - 08 - 2026

IBM Partners with OpenAI, Plans to Train Thousands of Consultants

IBM has partnered with OpenAI to accelerate the adoption of artificial intelligence across large enterprises, combining OpenAI’s models and tools with IBM’s global consulting capabilities as competition for corporate AI spending intensifies.

Under the agreement, the companies will jointly market AI solutions and develop industry-specific applications for sectors including financial services, government, telecommunications and retail. The financial terms of the partnership were not disclosed.

A key component of the deal is IBM’s plan to establish a dedicated OpenAI practice within IBM Consulting. According to Mike Healy, Managing Partner at IBM Consulting, the company intends to train and certify tens of thousands of consultants on OpenAI technologies over the coming months, primarily by retraining existing employees.

The training programme will cover technologies including OpenAI’s Codex, API and cybersecurity capabilities, alongside consultative solution credentials. IBM will also establish a team of specialised “Forward Deployed Experts” trained through OpenAI’s Partner Network to support enterprise deployments.

The partnership will also see IBM integrate OpenAI technologies into IBM Consulting Advantage, its AI platform for consultants. IBM said the integration will include OpenAI’s latest models and tools, including GPT-5.6, Codex and ChatGPT Work, enabling consultants to help organisations deploy AI across core business operations.

The alliance marks another significant step in OpenAI’s expanding enterprise strategy. Rather than relying solely on direct sales, the company is increasingly working with major technology companies and systems integrators that already have established relationships with large organisations.

For IBM, the agreement adds OpenAI to its growing portfolio of frontier AI partnerships. The company has adopted a model-agnostic approach, combining its own Granite family of AI models with third-party technologies through platforms such as watsonx and its consulting business.

The partnership also builds on an earlier collaboration between the two companies. In June, IBM and OpenAI announced the OpenAI Daybreak Cyber Partner Program, focused on cybersecurity. The latest agreement expands that relationship by bringing OpenAI models into IBM Autonomous Security, IBM’s multi-agent-powered cybersecurity offering.

The announcement comes as IBM seeks to accelerate growth from its artificial intelligence business. Despite recent pressure on its financial outlook, IBM CEO Arvind Krishna has continued to describe AI adoption as a long-term growth driver for the company.

For OpenAI, meanwhile, the IBM relationship provides access to a vast global consulting workforce and enterprise customer base. Training tens of thousands of consultants could create a significant pool of professionals capable of helping companies implement OpenAI technologies at scale.

The partnership ultimately reflects a broader shift in enterprise AI: the next stage of the market is increasingly about moving from experimentation with AI models to large-scale deployment across real business processes. By combining OpenAI’s models with IBM’s consulting, industry expertise and enterprise infrastructure, the two companies are positioning the alliance to compete for that next phase of corporate AI adoption.