India, Dec. 9 -- IBM has agreed to acquire Confluent in an USD 11 billion deal that signals how crucial real-time data has become for the next wave of enterprise Artificial Intelligence (AI). Announced on December 8, the transaction brings together IBM's hybrid cloud and automation stack with Confluent's data streaming platform built on Apache Kafka. For companies racing to build faster applications and AI agents, the merger could reshape how data flows across large tech environments.

IDC estimates more than one billion new logical applications by 2028. Many of these apps, along with AI-powered agents, need quick access to accurate data. IBM says the combined company will help businesses link applications, analytics systems, and AI tools...