Key Notes
- Imagine Enterprise combines IBM Consulting’s industry expertise and library of more than 6,000 agents and assets with Microsoft’s AI, cloud and security tools.
- The initial industry frameworks cover financial services, insurance and retail, with other sectors identified for potential expansion.
- Businesses can use IBM-managed, jointly developed or self-managed deployments, while standard pricing and additional industry launch dates were not announced.
IBM and Microsoft have launched Imagine Enterprise, a platform for building, running and governing AI agents around industry-specific business processes. Announced on November 10, the offering combines IBM Consulting’s implementation expertise with Microsoft’s AI, cloud and security infrastructure, with an initial focus on financial services, insurance and retail.
The companies announced the platform as enterprises move from isolated AI experiments toward agents that interact with company data and operational systems. That shift makes permissions, oversight and accountability central to deployment: an agent carrying out a business process needs defined responsibilities and limits on what it can do.
Industry expertise meets Microsoft’s AI infrastructure
Imagine Enterprise draws on more than 6,000 AI agents and assets from IBM Consulting Advantage. The figure describes the combined library of agents and supporting assets, rather than 6,000 newly released standalone products. IBM’s industry frameworks and consulting teams help adapt that foundation to a customer’s data, processes and operating requirements.
Microsoft Foundry and Copilot Studio provide tools for coordinating agents and enterprise systems, while Azure supplies the cloud foundation. Microsoft Entra, Purview and Defender contribute identity, data governance and security capabilities. IBM’s Process Studio and Context Studio connect the resulting workflows to the organization’s business processes and context, with observability and controls intended to support ongoing supervision.
That emphasis reflects a broader push to package AI around specific industries. Google Cloud’s newly announced Gemini for Healthcare, for example, focuses on clinical and administrative workflows. IBM and Microsoft are pursuing a wider initial set of industries, with implementation and governance services forming part of the proposition.
How businesses can deploy Imagine Enterprise
Customers can engage IBM Consulting to deploy and operate the platform on their behalf or work with the company on a joint implementation. Self-management options are also available, according to the announcement. Qualifying engagements can include forward-deployed engineering support; the companies did not publish a standard price list or a timetable for expanding into additional industries.
Financial technology and asset-management services company SEI appears in the announcement as an example of the enterprise transformation work surrounding the partnership. SEI is exploring emerging and agentic technologies with IBM Consulting and Microsoft’s support. SEI’s chief AI strategist, Sneha Shah, emphasized trust and human judgment as the company considers how to scale the technology.
Manufacturing, energy, the public sector and mobility are among the areas the companies identify for potential expansion. For now, the practical entry point is the initial industry frameworks and a discussion with IBM Consulting about deployment. IBM’s product page outlines the platform’s architecture and the services supporting it.
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