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IBM and Microsoft announce Imagine Enterprise agent platform

IBM and Microsoft announced Imagine Enterprise, a platform for building, running and governing AI agents in industry-specific processes. Its initial frameworks cover financial services, insurance and retail, and the platform is available th

AI.info Team · Written with AI · fact-checked · 2026-11-10

A shared platform for enterprise agents

IBM and Microsoft announced Imagine Enterprise on Nov. 10, a platform for enterprises to build, run and govern AI agents for industry-specific processes. It combines IBM Consulting’s expertise and agent assets with Microsoft’s AI, data, cloud and security technologies.

The platform is aimed particularly at organizations in regulated industries, according to IBM’s announcement. It is designed to connect agents with company data and processes, and to provide controls, observability and AI-compliance support.

IBM Consulting brings more than 6,000 AI agents and assets built on IBM Consulting Advantage, IBM’s AI-powered delivery platform. Microsoft supplies technology intended to support agents across an enterprise, while forward-deployed engineers from both companies can help customers move from experimentation to production for qualifying engagements, which IBM and Microsoft say they can support.

Tools and deployment

The platform is designed to work with organizations’ existing data, processes, systems and technology environments. The approach is to let enterprises build on what they already use and scale over time, with security, identity, AI governance and control incorporated into the platform.

The release lists Microsoft Foundry, GitHub Copilot and Microsoft Copilot Studio among the technologies that help coordinate agents and enterprise systems. Microsoft Fabric, Microsoft 365 infrastructure, Microsoft Entra, Microsoft Purview, Microsoft Defender and Microsoft Azure provide what IBM and Microsoft describe as the data, identity, governance, security and cloud foundation.

IBM Consulting Advantage’s Process Studio, Context Studio and Advantage Core are intended to help organizations design, deploy and govern tailored agents. The platform can bring business knowledge and context to the work of both people and agents, IBM says.

SEI explores agentic technology

SEI, a financial technology, operations and asset management provider, is exploring agentic technologies with IBM Consulting and support from Microsoft as part of its enterprise transformation. The company is also using other technologies from IBM Consulting and Microsoft to seek improvements to its operations and to employee and client experiences, according to the announcement.

Sneha Shah, SEI’s chief AI strategist and head of SEI Next, said the work is intended to explore how emerging capabilities could support critical processes and be responsibly scaled over time. She said SEI’s focus is on using AI in ways that strengthen trust, support human decision-making and create value across its business.

Mohamad Ali, IBM Consulting’s senior vice president and head, said customers want to build what he called an “agentic business,” rather than use AI only to speed up existing work. He said IBM and Microsoft are helping organizations bring human expertise and digital labor together across the enterprise.

Rodrigo Kede Lima, president of Microsoft Frontier Company, said enterprise AI depends on turning data, industry expertise and AI into action. He said the companies aim to help customers move from AI ambition to business impact faster and with confidence.

Initial industries and access

Imagine Enterprise’s initial industry-specific frameworks cover financial services, insurance and retail. The frameworks are intended to provide a repeatable blueprint for potential future additions, including manufacturing, energy, the public sector and mobility, IBM says.

The platform is available to clients through IBM Consulting, which can deploy and operate it on a client’s behalf or work with clients on enterprise-scale implementations. The release also says self-management options are available.

Any statements about IBM and Microsoft’s future direction and intent may change or be withdrawn without notice, and represent goals and objectives only, IBM’s statement says.