IBM commits to health with $1bn Merge buy
New technology will allow its Watson supercomputer to 'see', IBM claims
IBM has bolstered its position in the healthcare space by splashing out $1bn (£644.5m) on a health-focused tech firm which it claims will help its Watson supercomputer to "see".
Merge Healthcare is a medical imaging specialist whose kit is used in more than 7,500 healthcare sites across the US. Its technology will help IBM's supercomputer Watson to "see" by combining the images with its own image analytics and cognitive capabilities.
Watson – which itself is a business unit within IBM – established its Health arm in April this year. Since then, IBM has snapped up two other healthcare firms: Phytel and Explorys. Merge is the largest acquisition it has made in the space to date.
IBM claims the buyout will prompt Watson Health to make big steps forward once the deal clears.
"The planned acquisition bolsters IBM's strategy to add rich image analytics with deep learning to the Watson Health platform – in effect, advancing Watson beyond natural language and giving it the ability to 'see'," the firm said in a statement. "Medical images are by far the largest and fastest-growing data source in the healthcare industry and perhaps the world – IBM researchers estimate that they account for at least 90 per cent of all medical data today."
John Kelly, senior vice president of IBM Research and Solutions added that health is a crucial market for Big Blue.
"As a proven leader in delivering healthcare solutions for over 20 years, Merge is a tremendous addition to the Watson Health platform," he said. "Healthcare will be one of IBM's biggest growth areas over the next 10 years, which is why we are making a major investment to drive industry transformation and to facilitate a higher quality of care.
"Watson's powerful cognitive and analytic capabilities, coupled with those from Merge and our other major strategic acquisitions, position IBM to partner with healthcare providers, research institutions, biomedical companies, insurers and other organisations committed to changing the very nature of health and healthcare in the 21st century. Giving Watson 'eyes' on medical images unlocks entirely new possibilities for the industry."