IBM Plans to Invest $150 Billion
Domestically in Latest Tech Sector Pledge
The announcement comes as the Trump administration
pressures firms to expand their U.S. manufacturing.
·
It
would invest $150 billion in the United States over the next five years,
including $30 billion to support production of its mainframe and quantum
computers.
·
Chipmaker
Nvidia said this month it would invest $500 billion and produce all of its A.I.
supercomputers in the United States.
·
A
$10 billion project announced in Wisconsin by the electronics manufacturer
Foxconn in 2018 — hailed by Mr. Trump as the “eighth wonder of the world” —
fell far short of expectations.
·
Taiwan
Semiconductor Manufacturing Company, the world’s largest chip manufacturer,
said last month it would spend $100 billion in the United States over the next
four years to expand its production capacity and bring its most advanced
semiconductor processes to its operations in Arizona.
·
The
company said that it planned to spend $500 billion and hire 20,000 people in
the United States over the next four years, and open a factory in Texas to make
the machines that power the company’s push into artificial intelligence.
· A joint venture between OpenAI, SoftBank and Oracle to create at least $100 billion in computing infrastructure to power artificial intelligence, an initiative that added to tech companies’ significant investments in U.S. data centers, although the push to form the venture predated his term.
IBM
on Monday (28.04.2025) joined a slew of technology companies to announce plans for
new investments in the United States, as the Trump administration pressures firms
to expand their U.S. manufacturing.
The
software company, headquartered in Armonk, N.Y., said it would invest $150 billion
in the United States over the next five years, including $30 billion to support
production of its mainframe and quantum computers. The announcement, framed in part
as an effort to fuel the American economy, comes after the chipmaker Nvidia said
this month it would invest $500 billion and produce all of its A.I. supercomputers
in the United States.
“With
this investment and manufacturing commitment, we are ensuring that IBM remains the
epicenter of the world’s most advanced computing and AI
capabilities,” Arvind Krishna, IBM’s chief executive, said in a statement.
But
whether pledges from IBM and other tech giants fully come to fruition remains to
be seen. Investments touted by major firms, including during President Trump’s first
term, have at times fallen short of plans described in their announcements. A $10
billion project announced in Wisconsin by the electronics manufacturer Foxconn in
2018 — hailed by Mr. Trump as the “eighth wonder of the world” — fell far short
of expectations.
The
announcements have come steadily since Mr. Trump’s inauguration. Taiwan Semiconductor
Manufacturing Company, the world’s largest chip manufacturer, said last month it
would spend $100 billion in the United States over the next four years to expand
its production capacity and bring its most advanced semiconductor processes to its
operations in Arizona. In February, days after Apple’s chief executive met with
Mr. Trump, the company said that it planned to spend $500 billion and hire 20,000
people in the United States over the next four years, and open a factory in Texas
to make the machines that power the company’s push into artificial intelligence.
In
January, Mr. Trump announced a joint venture between OpenAI, SoftBank and Oracle
to create at least $100 billion in computing infrastructure to power artificial
intelligence, an initiative that added to tech companies’ significant investments
in U.S. data centers, although the push to form the venture
predated his term.
The
Trump administration has pressured companies to produce more in the United States,
with a particular aim at China. Even so, it has spared smartphones, computers, semiconductors
and other electronics from tariffs Mr. Trump imposed on Chinese goods as part of
his trade war.