IBM and Anthropic form partnership to drive the development of enterprise software with security and governance

IBM (NYSE: IBM) and Anthropic announce strategic partnership to accelerate AI development for the enterprise environment by integrating Claude & one of the world's most advanced language model families & IBM's software portfolio.The goal is to drive measurable productivity gains by incorporating security, governance and cost control directly into the software development lifecycle.

As part of the partnership, Claude will be integrated with select IBM products, starting with the new AI-focused integrated development environment (IDE) designed for the enterprise software development (SDLC) lifecycle, including application modernization.

The IDE is available in private preview to select IBM customers.In initial testing, more than 6,000 early adopters within IBM itself are already using the new tool, reporting average productivity gains of 45%, which translates into significant cost savings while maintaining code quality and security standards.

As organizations move from AI experimentation to production deployment, the need for solutions that seamlessly integrate with existing enterprise infrastructure and meet stringent IT requirements grows. IBM offers proven expertise in enterprise software delivery, hybrid cloud architecture, and action in regulated industries & ensures AI tools work within the complex realities of global business.

“A IBM has been the backbone of enterprise technology for decades because we understand what it takes to scale in critical environments,”, said Dinesh Nirmal, Senior Vice President of Software at IBM.“This partnership strengthens our software portfolio with advanced AI capabilities while maintaining the governance, security and reliability our customers expect.We are offering development teams AI that adapts to the way companies operate ¡n rather than experimental tools that create new risks.”

“Companies are looking for AI they can truly trust with their code, data, and day-to-day operations,”, said Mike Krieger, Chief Product Officer at Anthropic. “ Claude has become the AI of choice for developers at the world's largest companies thanks to our focus on security and reliability.This partnership with IBM allows us to bring that same level of commitment to even more enterprise teams, while building open standards that will make AI agents truly useful in business environments.”

Automating the Software Development Lifecycle

Using cutting-edge language models like Claude, the new IBM IDE is designed to increase developer productivity.Compatible with multiple languages and work modes, it offers advanced use cases to support tasks at various stages of the software development lifecycle, including:

• Modernizing applications at scale: Automated system updates, framework migration, and context-aware, multi-step refactoring in large codebases.
• Intelligent code generation and review: AI assistance that comprises enterprise architecture standards, security requirements, and compliance obligations.
• End-to-end orchestration: From initial development to testing, deployment and maintenance, orchestrates modernization tasks, testing and corrections on an ongoing basis, maintaining context across sessions.
• Development with a focus on security: Security built right into workflows, with early vulnerability scans (“shift-left”), accelerated FedRAMP compliance, and migration support for quantum-resistant encryption

Guide for Enterprise AI Agents with MCP Servers

As part of the partnership, IBM created ' and Anthropic validated 'the guide “Architecting Secure Corporate AI Agents with MCP”. This is the first guide of its kind focused on the Agent Development Lifecycle (ADLC), a structured approach to designing, deploying, and managing AI agents in enterprise environments.

As organizations adopt AI agents for autonomous decision making and intelligent automation, traditional IT processes may become insufficient. ADLC offers a tailored methodology to meet the development, operation and security requirements of these agents.

In addition to strengthening its software portfolio, IBM is contributing its technology leadership to advancing open standards for AI deployment Model Context Protocol (MCP), including best practice guides, reference architectures, and open source tools based on your experience with thousands of customers.

IBM is also looking to integrate Claude with other products as part of its AI integration strategy.Together, IBM and Anthropic are shaping the future of enterprise AI - an AI that empowers developers, drives transformation and generates lasting value for customers and society.

Statements about future directions from IBM and Anthropic are subject to change or cancellation without notice, and represent only goals and intentions.