By Reuters
Publication Date: 2026-04-22 20:11:00
By Anhata Rooprai
April 22 (Reuters) – IBM’s revenue growth slowed in the first quarter on sluggishness in its software business, fanning fears of disruption from artificial intelligence tools and sending its shares down 6.5% after hours on Wednesday.
Concerns that AI will eat into the software business have grown with the launch of tools that can automate routine corporate functions.
IBM has especially been hit after Anthropic said in February one of its tools could help modernize COBOL, a language widely used on the company’s mainframes.
Big Blue’s revenue increased 9% in the first quarter to $15.92 billion, slower than the 12.2% growth in the previous quarter, even as it surpassed analysts’ average estimate of $15.62 billion, according to data compiled by LSEG.
IBM’s software segment, anchored by its high-margin hybrid cloud unit Red Hat, and a suite of AI tools under the Watsonx brand, also posted slower revenue growth of 11.3%.
“The…
