The Watson supercomputer has been in development for years. IBM’s use of its corporate venturing unit, IBM Venture Capital, led by Claudia Fan Munce, to tap into business opportunities through software ideas spawned from developers is a landmark move, not just for IBM, but the larger technology sector.
With the help of IBM Venture Capital, the Watson Fund has already made its first investment, a $22.1m series C round for Welltok. Welltok’s main product, CaféWell Concierge, is a new application infused with Watson’s cognitive computing capabilities.
Welltok’s app will call on Watson’s ability to uncover insights from big data by understanding the complexities of human language, reading millions of pages of data in seconds and improving its own performance by learning.
The deal was led by New Enterprise Associates with new participation from IBM and wireless telecommunications company Qualcomm through its corporate venturing arm, Qualcomm Ventures. The investment brings Welltok’s funding in the last 10 months to more than $40m, making it one of the past year’s best capitalised digital health companies.
The funding will go towards developing the new CaféWell Concierge product line, which addresses consumers’ questions about their health conditions and activities through personalised dialogue and give them guidance.
Watson will learn which itineraries or rewards are most successful in helping consumers reach health goals and refine recommendations accordingly, and Welltok will soon have a new feature, a quasi-cognitive supercomputer that can answer consumers’ questions directly.
The deal was the first foray into the healthcare sector for Watson, having already served largely retail clients, such as Macy’s department store.
One Watson case study illustrates how the supercomputer is helping IBM customers predict real-time and future demand. Blizzard Ski, which makes 400,000 skis a year, with some requiring as many as 18 different materials and taking up to 16 weeks to build, is using Watson data.
Blizzard Ski can forecast skiing trends, weather patterns and other short-term shifts in the market that affect the business, and can now respond quickly to changing demands in specific ski towns.
Data has also given Blizzard Ski the ability to monitor supplies so that no matter how demand changes, it can have the materials on hand to meet them and reducing production cycles.
By developing applications through Watson technology partnerships, IBM Ventures will have enviable access to some of the hottest apps coming to market.
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