Dear IBMer:

I am delighted to tell you about a new initiative that holds significant promise for infusing business and societal systems with intelligence. Today, IBM Research unveiled plans to build a computing system, code-named Watson, that will be able to compete with humans at the game of Jeopardy! -- a popular television quiz show that covers an unlimited range of topics. At the same time, Jeopardy! announced plans to stage a contest between Watson and human contestants on future shows. You can read about today’s announcement on w3.

Like Deep Blue, the IBM supercomputer that defeated the reigning world chess champion in 1997, Watson represents a major step in the capacity of IT systems to solve problems of previously unapproachable complexity. In truth, this challenge is even more daunting than chess due to its broad range of subject matter, the speed at which accurate answers must be provided and the need to analyze clues containing irony, riddles and other subtleties of human thought and expression. And like human contestants on Jeopardy!, Watson will not connect to the Internet or use any other outside assistance. This is about intelligence and analysis -- smarts, not search.

Advanced analytics from IBM Research are already enabling us to bring new levels of organizational intelligence to our clients -- witness our recently announced Business Analytics and Optimization service line -- and we expect the science underlying Watson to elevate computer intelligence and human-to-computer communication to unprecedented levels. In the future, we will apply these unique technological capabilities to the challenges facing businesses, institutions and societies. For instance, how might a system capable of mining massive volumes of data and finding answers to complex questions be applied to simplify compliance, detect fraud in real time, provide automated technical fixes to consumers via phone, speed diagnosis of medical conditions or enable companies to understand and cater to specific customer needs? That would truly be innovation that matters.

I believe Watson will add another chapter to IBM’s proud legacy of overcoming “grand challenges” in science and technology. This is the kind of undertaking that has distinguished our company from all others for nearly a century, and is a concrete demonstration of the potential for our planet -- companies, industries, cities and global systems -- to become smarter.

I know you join me in congratulating our researchers on the progress they’ve already made, and eagerly await the day when we start applying this incredible technology to further differentiate IBM in the marketplace. And I am also confident of one other thing -- that you share my pride today in being an IBMer.