IBM's New PowerAI Features Again Demonstrate Enterprise AI Leadership

Last November I wrote a column about IBM's newly announced AI software toolkit, PowerAI. PowerAI fulfills a special niche part of IBM's AI investment--aimed towards enterprises who want something in between Watson's turnkey solution ("easy button" on IBM Cloud) and a totally DIY on-prem infrastructure or public cloud. PowerAI runs on IBM's highest performing server in its OpenPOWER LC line (the Power S822LC for High Performance Computing), and utilizes deep learning frameworks and building block software to make it easier for enterprises to dive into AI and machine learning. Already these systems are landing in IT research groups and business units at companies. Recently, IBM announced a significant revamp of PowerAI, seeking to address some of the bigger challenges facing developers and data scientists--cutting down the time required for AI system training significantly, and simplifying the development experience.