AT&T and IBM announced today a partnership to create open, standards-based tools on the IBM Cloud to enable developers to more quickly build and implement IoT solutions.
AT&T and IBM are expanding their full commitment and investment in open-source based tools. In addition, developers can now add the power of IBM's Watson cognitive computing and AT&T's IoT platforms, such as Flow Designer and M2X. This combination of open standards and IBM's and AT&T's unique technologies will result in a new level of IoT possibilities and solutions for developers to leverage well into the future, according to the enterprises.
"We have heard the call from developers and businesses for more tools to make IoT a reality and, together with AT&T, we are bringing together powerful platforms and services to drive collaborative innovation,” said Harriet Green, general manager, IBM Watson IoT, Commerce & Education. “This collaboration enables developers to tap the power of cognitive computing and combine it with massive amounts of data streaming from billions of connected devices, sensors and systems to create solutions that can help transform businesses and society alike.”
Developers can now use IBM's open and security-rich Watson Internet of Things (IoT) Platform and Bluemix services together with AT&T IoT Platforms to gain deeper insights from data collected from connected devices. Watson APIs can be used to break down barriers to analyzing unstructured data and provide access to powerful capabilities, including advanced cognitive computing, machine learning and deep learning approaches to help better understand and engage users and tackle the massive growth of data in multiple formats, according to IBM.
Developers can tap into enhanced capabilities and create IoT apps, such as an asset tracker app that could show the location of an asset. When coupled with weather data from The Weather Company, for example, businesses could predict delays in the supply chain or reroute deliveries due to bad weather.
“From farming to fleets, there are many companies that would benefit from real, actionable IoT data,” said Chris Penrose, senior vice president, AT&T IoT Solutions. “Combining technologies with IBM can advance the developer experience--so they can build comprehensive IoT solutions for businesses. Developers can quickly turn their innovative ideas into cutting-edge solutions.”
The IBM Watson IoT Platform enables users to easily connect devices in a security-rich environment and build applications tapping advanced analytics and cognitive services. It uses learnings to better manage the data it collects--a constant improvement cycle. The simple access to IoT devices and data helps developers quickly create visual dashboards.
