IBM has formed a broad partnership with OpenAI that will bring models including GPT-5.6, Codex, and ChatGPT Work into IBM’s consulting and enterprise technology services. The companies will jointly develop AI solutions for sectors including financial services, government, telecommunications, and retail.
The agreement expands an existing relationship between the two companies and gives OpenAI another route into large corporate customers through IBM Consulting. Financial terms were not disclosed.
IBM said in its official announcement that it will establish a dedicated OpenAI practice within IBM Consulting. The company plans to train and certify tens of thousands of consultants on OpenAI technologies over the coming months.
IBM Will Train Consultants on OpenAI Tools
Training will cover products and areas including Codex, OpenAI’s API, cybersecurity, and consulting-focused solution credentials. IBM will also create a group of specialized Forward Deployed Experts trained through OpenAI’s partner ecosystem.
IBM plans to integrate OpenAI models and products into IBM Consulting Advantage, its internal AI platform for consultants. The system is designed to help teams analyze business processes, identify inefficiencies, and redesign workflows across areas such as finance, procurement, customer operations, and human resources.
The partnership fits IBM’s broader model-agnostic AI strategy. The company combines its own Granite models with third-party systems and uses platforms such as watsonx and IBM Consulting to help enterprises deploy different models depending on their requirements.
IBM announced a similar alliance with Anthropic in 2025, giving customers access to another major AI provider alongside its own technology.
Existing Cybersecurity Partnership Expands
IBM and OpenAI had already begun working together on cybersecurity. In June, IBM joined OpenAI’s Daybreak Cyber Partner Program, which connects OpenAI’s cyber-focused models with enterprise security tools and services.
The wider agreement will extend that work by connecting OpenAI models with IBM Autonomous Security. IBM says the combination is intended to help organizations identify, prioritize, and remediate vulnerabilities while maintaining governance and human oversight.
For OpenAI, IBM joins a growing list of large consulting and technology partners helping deploy its products inside businesses. The company has increasingly focused on enterprise implementation alongside its consumer and developer products.
IBM, meanwhile, is seeking additional growth from AI services as corporate spending shifts toward deploying models across existing operations. The partnership gives IBM consultants access to another major family of frontier models while allowing OpenAI to reach customers through IBM’s global consulting organization.
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