By Angelica Mari for Brazil Tech
IBM Brazil
is investing on expanding the presence of its cognitive computing platform
Watson in Brazil with the appointment of an executive to develop the business
area.
The Big
Blue's former business development head for SaaS and independent software
vendors (ISVs) David Dias is now leading the channel and ecosystem operation
for Watson in Brazil.
As well as
generating new Watson deals in Brazil, Dias has the goal of creating and
developing an ecosystem of ISVs, start-ups and businesses partners for Watson
and bringing the technology closer to developers and research and development
organizations in the country.
Watson is
possibly the best-known example of artificial intelligence in use today. The
platform is designed so that business users can literally ask questions -- from
medical diagnoses and the likely outcome of business decisions to answers to
legal questions -- on the spot.
IBM has a
large R&D facility in São Paulo which has been involved in the development
of Watson's technology and in the analysis of data in Brazilian Portuguese -
something that the company had intended only once interest in Watson turned
into actual deals.
Since it
started to pitch Watson to Brazilian customers last year, IBM signed a deal
with Bradesco, one of the largest banks in the country, which will be used in
its call centers to improve internal communication and speed up customer
service.