New york: US-based tech giant IBM announced Monday that it will acquire data streaming platform Confluent for $11 billion. IBM will pay $31 per share in cash for all of Confluent's issued and outstanding common shares. By the middle of 2026, the deal is anticipated to close, according to a statement by the firm.

According to Anadolu Agency, the acquisition aims to improve the integration of applications, analytics, data systems, and AI agents to enhance intelligence and resilience in hybrid cloud environments. IBM CEO Arvind Krishna emphasized that the collaboration will allow enterprises to deploy generative and agentic AI more effectively by ensuring reliable communication and data flow between various platforms and technologies.

Krishna elaborated on the strategic importance of the acquisition, highlighting the widespread distribution of data across public and private clouds, data centers, and numerous technology providers. He asserted that the acquisition will enable IBM to offer a smart data platform specifically designed for enterprise IT and AI applications.

Following the announcement, Confluent shares experienced a significant increase of over 28%, while IBM's shares saw a modest rise of approximately 0.8%.