“We are executing on our strategy to advance IBM as a software-led, hybrid cloud and AI platform company,” Krishna said. “IBM Z continues to be the backbone of enterprise IT, enabling clients to integrate seamlessly with hybrid cloud while unlocking new levels of resiliency, scalability and performance,” CFO and SVP James Kavanaugh said during the call. Mainframes are a cornerstone of IBM’s broader AI strategy, rooted in hybrid cloud interoperability and data sovereignty. IBM has seen enterprise demand for data sovereignty and on-premise controls grow as AI initiatives gain traction, according to Krishna. The rack-scale hardware will support AI applications across hybrid cloud environments.