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IBM Ventures

North America, New York, United States, Armonk

Description

IBM Ventures serves as the corporate venture capital arm of IBM, strategically investing in early to growth-stage enterprise software startups. Based in Armonk, New York, their investment thesis is deeply aligned with IBM's core technological priorities, focusing on areas such as artificial intelligence, data management, cybersecurity, quantum computing, hybrid cloud, and automation. This strategic alignment aims to foster innovation that complements IBM's product roadmap and market reach, positioning IBM at the forefront of emerging enterprise technologies.

As a corporate VC, IBM Ventures seeks more than just financial returns; they prioritize strategic partnerships and potential integrations that can enhance IBM's offerings or expand its ecosystem. They typically engage with companies from Series A to Series C, providing not only capital but also invaluable access to IBM's vast resources. This includes leveraging IBM's global client base, extensive research and development capabilities, technical expertise, and sales channels, offering portfolio companies a unique pathway to scale and market validation within the enterprise sector.

IBM Ventures typically deploys initial checks ranging from approximately $500,000 to $5 million, with the capacity for larger follow-on investments as portfolio companies grow. Their portfolio spans dozens of companies across various enterprise technology sectors, reflecting a consistent commitment to fostering innovation within their strategic domains. For instance, they have invested in over 50 companies, demonstrating a robust and active investment pace. This approach allows IBM to stay at the forefront of emerging technologies, identify potential acquisition targets, and build a network of innovative partners that can drive future growth for both IBM and its portfolio companies.

Investor Profile

IBM Ventures has backed more than 29 startups, with 3 new investments in the last 12 months alone. The firm has led 7 rounds, about 24% of its total and boasts 8 exits across its portfolio.

Investment Focus Highlights

  • Concentrates on Series B, Series Unknown, Series A rounds (top funding stages).
  • Majority of deals are located in United States, Israel, United Kingdom.
  • Strong thematic focus on Software, Artificial Intelligence (AI), Machine Learning.
  • Typical check size: $500K – $5M.

Stage Focus

  • Series B (21%)
  • Series Unknown (21%)
  • Series A (17%)
  • Series C (17%)
  • Pre Seed (7%)
  • Series E (7%)
  • Seed (3%)
  • Convertible Note (3%)
  • Series F (3%)

Country Focus

  • United States (72%)
  • Israel (10%)
  • United Kingdom (7%)
  • France (3%)
  • Vietnam (3%)

Industry Focus

  • Software
  • Artificial Intelligence (Ai)
  • Machine Learning
  • Cyber Security
  • Information Technology
  • Network Security
  • Health Care
  • Enterprise Software
  • Generative Ai
  • Saas
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FAQ

Frequently Asked Questions

Learn who this investor regularly partners with—both firms and angels—and explore their latest activity.

Who does IBM Ventures frequently co-invest with?

Accenture
Europe, Dublin, Ireland, Dublin
Co-Investments: 3
Team8
Asia, Tel Aviv, Israel, Tel Aviv-yafo
Co-Investments: 2
ICONIQ Growth
North America, California, United States, San Francisco
Co-Investments: 2
Sanabil
Asia, Ar Riyad, Saudi Arabia, Riyadh
Co-Investments: 2
Insight Partners
North America, New York, United States, New York
Co-Investments: 3
M12 - Microsoft's Venture Fund
North America, California, United States, San Francisco
Co-Investments: 2
Salesforce Ventures
North America, California, United States, San Francisco
Co-Investments: 5
PremjiInvest
Asia, Karnataka, India, Bangalore
Co-Investments: 2
Booz Allen Ventures
North America, California, United States, San Francisco
Co-Investments: 2
IBM
North America, New York, United States, Armonk
Co-Investments: 5

Which angels does IBM Ventures often collaborate with?

VR
North America, California, United States, Palo Alto
Shared Deals: 1
AP
North America, California, United States, San Francisco
Shared Deals: 1
CK
North America, California, United States, San Jose
Shared Deals: 1

What are some of recent deals done by IBM Ventures?

Ox Security

Tel Aviv, Tel Aviv, Israel

Ox Security is an application security platform that helps organizations manage software security throughout the development lifecycle.

Artificial Intelligence (AI)Cyber SecurityNetwork SecurityRisk Management
Series BMay 7, 2025
Amount Raised: $60,000,000
Writer

San Francisco, California, United States

Writer is a software firm that develops a full-stack generative AI platform delivering transformative ROI for enterprises.

ContentGenerative AINatural Language ProcessingProductivity ToolsVirtual Assistant
Series CNov 12, 2024
Amount Raised: $200,000,000
Reality Defender

New York, New York, United States

Reality Defender is a deep-fake and AI-generated media detection platform that helps to detect AI-generated and manipulated content.

Artificial Intelligence (AI)Fraud DetectionIdentity ManagementNetwork Security
Series AOct 22, 2024
Amount Raised: $33,000,000
Rohirrim

Reston, Virginia, United States

Rohirrim uses generative AI for RFP automation and knowledge management, automating repetitive tasks for proposal teams.

Artificial Intelligence (AI)Generative AISaaSSoftware
Series UnknownJul 10, 2024
Mistral AI

Paris, Ile-de-France, France

Mistral AI is an AI startup that provides developers and businesses access to open and portable generative AI solutions.

Artificial Intelligence (AI)Generative AIMachine LearningNatural Language ProcessingSoftware
Series BJun 11, 2024
Amount Raised: $502,074,275
Unstructured Technologies

Rocklin, California, United States

Unstructured develops an open-source data transformation platform to preprocess natural language data for machine learning services.

Artificial Intelligence (AI)Machine LearningNatural Language ProcessingOpen Source
Series BMar 14, 2024
Amount Raised: $40,000,000
Synthetaic

Delafield, Wisconsin, United States

Synthetaic is a company that grows large and high-quality datasets sufficient for machine learning.

Artificial Intelligence (AI)Big DataData Collection and LabelingGenerative AIInformation TechnologyMachine Learning
Series BFeb 6, 2024
Amount Raised: $15,000,000
Gem

New York, New York, United States

Gem mission is to help security operations evolve into the cloud era, and stop cloud threats before they become incidents.

Cloud SecurityCyber SecurityNetwork Security
Series ASep 27, 2023
Amount Raised: $23,000,000
HiddenLayer

Austin, Texas, United States

HiddenLayer provides a software-based platform that helps enterprises monitor the inputs and outputs of machine-learning algorithms.

Cyber SecurityMachine LearningSecurity
Series ASep 19, 2023
Amount Raised: $50,249,922
VietGigs., JSC

Hanoi, NA - Vietnam, Vietnam

Freelancer Marketplace with Service and Project in Vietnam

FreelanceHuman ResourcesSoftwareStaffing Agency
Pre SeedSep 7, 2023
Amount Raised: $18,000