IBM Acquires DataStax to Enhance AI Capabilities and Data Management

IBM's Acquisition of DataStax: A Major Boost for Its AI Data Platform

IBM has announced its intent to acquire DataStax, a leading data platform provider. This strategic acquisition significantly boosts IBM's AI data platform by integrating advanced vector capabilities critical for powering RAG applications. It positions IBM to help businesses leverage value from vast volumes of unstructured data, an area where IBM lacks a strong foothold. DataStax's brings expertise to IBM in distributed databases capable of spanning multiple regions, an essential capability for enabling seamless global AI and data fabric deployments. Also, this acquisition strengthens IBM's commitment to advancing open-source initiatives with DataStax's support for Apache Cassandra database and Langflow, a low-code tool for AI development. What It Means IBM has made numerous acquisitions over the years, but this one stands out as one of the most strategic moves to enhance its data platform, primarily focusing on AI. While IBM has previously acquired database companies, integrating them into its stack has often been slow. The success of this acquisition will hinge on how quickly and seamlessly it integrates with IBM's watsonx AI platform. This acquisition positions IBM to better compete in the AI space in several key ways by adding:

IBM to Acquire DataStax to Expand Generative AI Capabilities

IBM has announced that it plans to acquire DataStax, a provider of AI and data solutions. The acquisition will strengthen IBM's watsonx portfolio, helping businesses use unstructured data for generative AI applications. The acquisition is expected to close in the second quarter of 2025, subject to regulatory approvals and customary closing conditions. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed. IBM said that the deal aligns with its focus on open-source AI. DataStax, known for AstraDB and DataStax Enterprise, provides NoSQL and vector database capabilities powered by Apache Cassandra. The company has also developed Langflow, an open-source low-code AI application development tool. IBM confirmed its commitment to supporting and innovating within open-source communities, including Apache Cassandra, Langflow, Apache Pulsar, and OpenSearch. The company also continues its work on open-source AI initiatives such as IBM Granite foundation models and Instruct Lab. Businesses face challenges in managing unstructured enterprise data, which is crucial for generative AI. McKinsey reports that 70% of companies with high-performing AI initiatives experience data-related issues, with only 1% of enterprise data represented in AI models. "Businesses cannot realize the full potential of generative AI without the right infrastructure - open-source tools and technologies that empower developers, harness unstructured data, and provide a strong foundation for AI applications," said Dinesh Nirmal, senior vice president of IBM Software. "DataStax possesses deep competency in this area and shares IBM's commitment to simplifying and scaling generative AI for the enterprise." DataStax's products will integrate with IBM's existing offerings. AstraDB and DataStax Enterprise will enhance the vector capabilities of IBM watsonx.data, a hybrid data lakehouse for AI and analytics. Langflow will add flexible middleware capabilities to IBM watsonx.ai, the company's generative AI development studio. "Enterprises want to deliver production AI fast but are still struggling to unlock the value in their data to power AI applications and agents," said Chet Kapoor, chairman and CEO of DataStax. "DataStax's products solve this problem, accelerating AI's promise with the scalability, security, and accuracy developers and enterprises need. We've long said that there is no AI without data, and are excited to execute this vision with IBM." DataStax serves customers such as FedEx, Capital One, The Home Depot, and Verizon. Founded in 2010, the company is headquartered in Santa Clara, California.

IBM buys DataStax to boost its watsonx data platform for AI applications - SiliconANGLE

IBM buys DataStax to boost its watsonx data platform for AI applications IBM Corp. said today it's buying the database company DataStax Inc. in an effort to turbocharge the capabilities of its growing watsonx portfolio of artificial intelligence development tools. The company said it's planning to integrate DataStax's technology into watsonx's generative AI products, where it will help to manage and streamline access to the vast amounts of data they require. In addition, the deal will also enhance its commitment to building open-source AI products. The financial terms of the deal were not disclosed. It's expected to close sometime during the second quarter, subject to regulatory approval. DataStax's flagship product is a cloud-based database-as-a-service offering called Astra DB, which is built on the popular open-source Apache Cassandra database management system that's designed to handle vast amounts of information distributed across multiple locations and environments. IBM stressed that DataStax will continue to work on the Apache Cassandra project, where it is one of the largest contributors, as well as the other open-source initiatives it's involved in, such as Langflow, Apache Pulsar and OpenSearch. IBM's immediate plan will be to integrate Astra DB with its watsonx.data platform, which is a data lake for AI and analytics workloads. The integration will add vital vector search capabilities to watsonx.data, it said. In addition, it's also interested in Langflow, which is a visual framework for building AI applications that can enhance its own AI development studio tools. IBM Software Senior Vice President Dinesh Nirmal said in a blog post that businesses will struggle to realize the full potential of generative AI without the right infrastructure in place. That infrastructure consists primarily of open-source tools and technologies that empower developers and get a lid on unstructured data, he explained. "DataStax possesses deep competency in this area and shares IBM's relentless commitment to simplifying and scaling generative AI for the enterprise," he added. DataStax Chief Executive Chet Kapoor added in his own blog post that he has long said there is no AI without data. "This vision will now be propelled as DataStax joins IBM," he said. "With our technology and IBM's watsonx.data, we will be able to bring vector and AI search to the entire data estate and make IBM's capabilities available to every developer." Constellation Research Inc. analyst Dough Henschen noted that IBM is getting a lot more for its money than just an enhanced AI data platform, as DataStax's technology underpins the entire data environments of dozens of big enterprises. They include Netflix Inc., Overstock Inc., FedEx Corp., Capital One Financial Corp., and Intuit Inc. "The underlying platform is solid and geared to massive, global-scale deployments," he pointed out. That said, IBM may face a challenge in keeping some of those customers, for Henschen said some of them may instead turn to self-managing the open-source version of Apache Cassandra instead, or alternatively go with one of its rivals. "DataStax has faced increased competition in recent years, primarily from public cloud vendors, leading with AWS, which offers both DynamoDB and Amazon Keyspaces," Henschen said. Other tools within DataStax's portfolio include the Astra Streaming service that's used to create real-time data pipelines, plus the DataStax AI Platform that's used to design and develop AI applications. The company has also developed RAGStack, which helps to simplify retrieval augmented generation, a technique that enables large language models to access external data sources to improve their knowledge. Last year, DataStax debuted a new enterprise-grade AI development platform that integrates Nvidia Corp.'s AI Enterprise software suite. It's called the DataStax AI Platform, Built with Nvidia, and claims to be one of the most comprehensive platforms for enterprise AI software development in the business.

IBM To Buy DataStax, Expand Watsonx AI Portfolio's Data Management Capabilities

IBM said Tuesday it has a deal to acquire DataStax, including that company's database platform, data streaming technology, and development tools for building data-intensive AI applications that use retrieval augmented generation. IBM is acquiring DataStax and its cloud database development platform in a move to expand the capabilities of the IBM Watsonx AI portfolio, the companies said Tuesday. IBM, in a statement announcing the acquisition deal, said adding DataStax to Watsonx will accelerate the use of generative AI at scale among its customers and help "unlock value" from huge volumes of unstructured data. The IT giant also said the acquisition builds on its commitment to open-source AI: DataStax's Astra DB cloud platform and DataStax Enterprise NoSQL and vector database are built on the open-source Apache Cassandra database for managing large amounts of data distributed across multiple locations. [Related: The Coolest Database System Companies Of The 2024 Big Data 100] "The strategic acquisition of DataStax brings cutting-edge capabilities in managing unstructured and semi-structured data to Watsonx, building on open-source Cassandra investments for enterprise applications and enabling clients to modernize and develop next generation AI applications," said Ritika Gunnar, IBM general manager, data and AI, in a blog post. "With DataStax's AstraDB and DataStax Enterprise, Watsonx will leverage robust capabilities of NoSQL and advanced vector representations. Our combined technology will capture richer, more nuanced representations of knowledge, ultimately leading to more efficient and accurate outcomes," Gunnar said. "We have long said that there is no AI without data, and this vision will now be propelled as DataStax joins IBM," DataStax CEO Chet Kapoor said in his own blog post about the acquisition deal. "With our technologies and IBM's Watsonx.data, their hybrid, open data lakehouse, we will be able to bring vector and AI search to the entire data estate and make IBM's capabilities available to every developer." In addition to its database, DataStax's product portfolio also includes Astra Streaming for building real-time data pipelines, the DataStax AI Platform for building and deploying AI applications, and an enterprise AI platform that incorporates Nvidia AI technology. "By harnessing DataStax's expertise in managing large-scale, unstructured data and combining it with Watsonx's innovative data AI solutions, we will provide enterprise ready data for AI with better data performance, search relevancy, and overall operational efficiency," Gunnar said. Another key attraction for IBM is DataStax's Langflow open-source, low-code tools for developing AI applications that use retrieval augmented generation (RAG). DataStax acquired those tools in April 2024 when it bought Langflow, the company. "Langflow empowers developers to rapidly prototype, build, and deploy RAG and multi-agent AI applications with simplicity," Gunnar wrote. "By providing a low-code interface, it simplifies the complex integration of generative AI models, data processing, and AI workflows, enabling developers to focus on creating intelligent generative AI applications rather than managing technical integrations and complexity associated with building AI applications." IBM did not disclose financial details of the planned acquisition, which is expected to be completed sometime in the second quarter of this year, subject to customary closing conditions and regulatory approvals. DataStax, founded in 2010 and headquartered in Santa Clara, Calif., is privately held. The company raised $115 million in a private equity funding round led by Goldman Sachs in June 2022. Altogether the company raised $342.6 million, according to the Crunchbase website. IBM is in the process of acquiring HashiCorp, a developer of infrastructure and security automation tools, for $6.4 billion. While that acquisition was originally slated to close by the end of 2024, it has been held up by regulators, including in the U.K. But on Tuesday the U.K. regulatory body, The Competition and Markets Authority, posted a notice saying the CMA had cleared IBM's acquisition of HashiCorp.

IBM acquires DataStax to boost watsonx's generative AI capabilities

DataStax's AstraDB will enhance the existing vector capabilities of IBM watsonx.data, while Langflow will add flexible middleware capabilities to watsonx.ai, IBM said. IBM has announced its intent to acquire database and related services provider DataStax for an undisclosed sum in an effort to boost watsonx's generative AI capabilities. "DataStax's technology will enhance IBM's watsonx portfolio of products accelerating the use of generative AI, helping companies unlock value from vast amounts of unstructured data," the company said in a statement, adding that the acquisition also builds on IBM's commitment to open source AI offerings. IBM's commitment to open-source AI includes the open-source IBM Granite foundation models and Instruct Lab, which the company describes as a new approach to advancing open-source innovation around large language models (LLMs).

IBM to Acquire DataStax Amid Deeper Gen AI Push

International Business Machines said it plans to acquire the AI and data solutions provider DataStax in a deal with undisclosed terms. The tech company said Tuesday that DataStax's technology will enhance products on IBM's Watsonx generative AI platform and build on its commitment to open-source AI. IBM said it would support and innovate the open-source communities in which DataStax participates. The deal is expected to close in the second quarter.

IBM plans to buy open source Cassandra wrangler DataStax

IBM plans to buy DataStax, the AI and data biz that supports and contributes to the open source Cassandra wide column database. The intent post-acquisition is for DataStax to continue to work with the open source Apache Cassandra, Langflow, Apache Pulsar, and OpenSearch communities in which DataStax participates. Big Blue expects the DataStax Cassandra database service AstraDB to improve the existing vector capabilities of IBM watsonx.data, IBM's data lake for AI and analytics. It also sees Langflow, the open source visual framework for building AI applications, adding middleware capabilities to IBM watsonx.ai, as its AI development studio. "Businesses cannot realize the full potential of generative AI without the right infrastructure - open source tools and technologies that empower developers, harness unstructured data, and provide a strong foundation for AI applications," said IBM Software senior veep Dinesh Nirmal. "DataStax possesses deep competency in this area and shares IBM's relentless commitment to simplifying and scaling generative AI for the enterprise," he claimed. In a similar back slapping mood, Chet Kapoor, chairman and CEO of DataStax, said: "We've long said that there is no AI without data." With its claims of speed, scalability, and fault-tolerance, Cassandra has attracted users in the software, retail, finance, and ecommerce sectors. In 2021, Vinay Chella, engineer and cloud data architect at Netflix, told The Register how the greater efficiency in 4.0 would help the online media giant manage and reduce its cloud bills. DataStax has had an up-and-down relationship with the open source community. In 2016, Datastax, the biggest donor to Apache Cassandra, drew back on its support for the database project, prompting criticism within the community. By way of a peace offering, DataStax donated tools it developed in building its AstraDB database service to the community to help with deployments in Kubernetes, including Helm, the package manager for Kubernetes, Reaper, a tool designed to manage the maintenance and repair tasks for a Cassandra cluster, and Medusa, a way to back up and restore data. "Like any good family, you're going to have fights," Patrick McFadin, Apache Cassandra and developer relations veep at DataStax, said at the time. An "airing of dirty laundry" in the community helped build bridges, he said. IBM expects to close the transaction in the second quarter of 2025, subject to customary closing conditions and regulatory approvals. ®