International Business Machines Corporation (IBM) is bolstering its cloud and artificial intelligence (AI) capabilities with the acquisition of Apptio from Vista Equity Partners for $4.6 billion.
Apptio is a leader in financial operational IT management and optimization (FinOps) software and has over 1,500 clients, IBM noted in a statement.
It partners and integrates with leading companies such as Amazon Web Services, Microsoft Azure, Google Cloud Platform, Salesforce, ServiceNow, Oracle and SAP, IBM said, highlighting that this was consistent with its commitment to an open partner ecosystem.
The company said the acquisition continued its deep focus investment in hybrid cloud and AI and is expected to drive “significant synergies” across key growth areas including automation, its Red Hat (NYSE:RHT) business, its broader AI portfolio, and its consulting business.
The cash transaction is expected to close in the latter half of 2023.
"Technology is changing business at a rate and pace we've never seen before. To capitalize on these changes, it is essential to optimize investments which drive better business value, and Apptio does just that," IMB CEO Arvind Krishna said in a statement.
"Apptio's offerings combined with IBM's IT automation software and watsonx AI platform, gives clients the most comprehensive approach to optimize and manage all of their technology investments."
Apptio CEO Sunny Gupta added: "We are so excited to be joining IBM and combining our industry-leading offerings with IBM's global presence and strong portfolio across AIOps, automation and hybrid cloud offerings."
IBM shares were trading 0.6% lower in pre-market trading following the announcement on Monday morning.
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