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IBM and Oracle Expand Partnership to Advance Agentic AI and Hybrid Cloud

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ARMONK, N.Y., May 6, 2025 /PRNewswire/ — IBM (NYSE: IBM) is working with Oracle to bring the power of watsonx, IBM’s flagship portfolio of AI products, to Oracle Cloud Infrastructure (OCI). Leveraging OCI’s native AI services, the latest milestone in IBM’s technology partnership with Oracle is designed to fuel a new era of multi-agentic, AI-driven productivity and efficiency across the enterprise.

Organizations today are deploying AI throughout their operations, looking to take advantage of the extraordinary advancements in generative AI models, tools, and agents. AI agents that can provide a single, easy-to-use interface to complete tasks are emerging as key tools to help simplify the deployment and use of AI across enterprise operations and functions. 

“AI delivers the most impactful value when it works seamlessly across an entire business,” said Greg Pavlik, executive vice president, AI and Data Management Services, Oracle Cloud Infrastructure. “IBM and Oracle have been collaborating to drive customer success for decades, and our expanded partnership will provide customers new ways to help transform their businesses with AI.”

Watsonx Orchestrate to support multi-agent workflows
To give customers a consistent way to build and manage agents across multi-agent, multi-system business processes, spanning both Oracle and non-Oracle applications and data sources, IBM is making its watsonx Orchestrate AI agent offerings available on OCI in July. This multi-agent approach using wastonx Orchestrate is designed to work with the expansive AI agent offerings embedded within the Oracle AI Agent Studio for Fusion Applications, as well as OCI Generative AI Agents, and OCI’s other AI services. It extends the ecosystem around Oracle Fusion Applications to enable further functionality across third-party and custom applications and data sources. The first use cases being addressed are in human resources. The watsonx Orchestrate agents will perform AI inferencing on OCI, which many customers use to host their data, AI, and other applications.

IBM agents run in watsonx Orchestrate on Red Hat OpenShift on OCI, including in public, sovereign, government, and Oracle Alloy regions, to enable customers to address specific regulatory and privacy requirements. The agents can also be hosted on-premises or in multicloud environments for true hybrid cloud capabilities.

IBM Granite Models Hosted on OCI Data Science
To give customers more choice of fit-for-purpose, compact and efficient models, Oracle intends to make the IBM Granite family of AI models available through its OCI Data Science via AI Quick Actions. To streamline Granite access, the open-source Granite models are expected to be available within OCI as a cached LLM in the second half of this year.

“By integrating our AI with Oracle’s offerings, we’re enabling businesses to easily deploy and manage AI agents across their enterprise,” said Kareem Yusuf Ph.D, Senior Vice President, Ecosystem, Strategic Partners & Initiatives, IBM. “Our collaboration with Oracle illustrates how IBM and our partners offer clients a seamless and flexible path to scale AI.” 

IBM Software to be Available on OCI
Oracle and IBM also plan to make IBM Envizi ESG Suite available on OCI, with an initial release in Saudi Arabia expected within the next 12 months. IBM Envizi is an enterprise sustainability solution that automates the capture, management and reporting of environmental, social, and governance (ESG) data.   

IBM’s watsonx.ai is now certified to run on OCI, enabling customers to leverage its industry-leading scalability and performance for bare metal and virtual machine instances with the benefits of the Red Hat OpenShift. Watsonx.ai is an enterprise-grade developer studio for building, running, and managing AI applications. Bringing  watsonx.ai to OCI can help organizations develop AI services on OCI, where they may already have applications and data, and deploy them into their application of choice with a collection of the APIs, tools, models, and runtimes.

Expanded Oracle Services from IBM Consulting
IBM is introducing expanded consulting services to help customers turn enterprise strategy into enterprise outcomes by enabling the use of AI agents across multiple platforms to transform end-to-end business processes. Leveraging deep technology and industry expertise, IBM Consulting will help customers orchestrate their agentic ecosystem by integrating, building, and scaling AI agents, including native Oracle AI agents, watsonx Orchestrate AI agents, and agents from across IBM’s partner ecosystem. IBM Consulting will also advise customers on how AI agents impact enterprise operating models and the workforce, including change management and enabling new ways of working. IBM consultants bring deep expertise in transforming core business processes like HR and supply chain as well as capabilities in its AI-powered delivery platform, IBM Consulting Advantage, to deliver value quickly.

IBM Consulting is offering new services that leverage AI-powered assets and methods to help Oracle customers migrate their workloads from on-premises virtual machines to Red Hat OpenShift Virtualization on OCI bare metal cloud. This service helps customers migrate and modernize their infrastructure as they deploy with the proven virtualization of the OpenShift container platform running on OCI to provide flexible infrastructure for both legacy applications and AI and hybrid multicloud workloads.

IBM brings deep expertise in business transformation with OCI and Oracle Fusion Cloud Applications, backed by a 38-year strategic partnership spanning technology and services, thousands of consultants who are certified across core Oracle technologies, and the acquisitions of Oracle consultancies Accelalpha and Applications Software Technology LLC.

Oracle and IBM also intend to pilot a joint go-to-market approach in select markets to help bring these new services and capabilities to customers.

“Agents are becoming an important strategic advantage for organizations to optimize operations and deliver better customer and employee experiences,” said Ritu Jyoti, IDC General Manager and Group Vice President. “Today’s most advanced agents are able to interact across different systems and processes, unleashing greater productivity and driving wider adoption. The Agentic AI approach IBM is taking with Oracle is a leading example of how the ability to orchestrate agentic workflows across systems can drive significant advantages, streamlining how work gets done and unlocking growth and innovation.”

For more information about this collaboration between IBM and Oracle, please visit: https://www.ibm.com/consulting/oracle

Statements regarding IBM’s future direction and intent are subject to change or withdrawal without notice and represent goals and objectives only.

About IBM
IBM is a leading provider of global hybrid cloud and AI, and consulting expertise. We help clients in more than 175 countries capitalize on insights from their data, streamline business processes, reduce costs and gain a competitive edge in their industries. Thousands of governments and corporate entities in critical infrastructure areas such as financial services, telecommunications and healthcare rely on IBM’s hybrid cloud platform and Red Hat OpenShift to affect their digital transformations quickly, efficiently and securely. IBM’s breakthrough innovations in AI, quantum computing, industry-specific cloud solutions and consulting deliver open and flexible options to our clients. All of this is backed by IBM’s long-standing commitment to trust, transparency, responsibility, inclusivity and service. Visit www.ibm.com for more information.

About Oracle
Oracle offers integrated suites of applications plus secure, autonomous infrastructure in the Oracle Cloud. For more information about Oracle (NYSE: ORCL), please visit us at www.oracle.com.

Trademarks
Oracle, Java, MySQL and NetSuite are registered trademarks of Oracle Corporation. NetSuite was the first cloud company—ushering in the new era of cloud computing.

Media Contacts:
Holli Haswell, IBM Communications
hhaswell@us.ibm.com

Calin Gunn, Oracle Communications
calin.gunn@oracle.com

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SOURCE IBM

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Trive Capital Announces Sale of EarthLink

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DALLAS, Oct. 20, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — Trive Capital (“Trive”) is pleased to announce that it has closed on the sale of EarthLink, LLC (“EarthLink” or the “Company”) to a family office consortium consisting of WaveDivision Capital (“Wave”), The Pritzker Organization (“TPO”) and Stephens Capital Partners (“SCP”), in partnership with EarthLink’s management team. Headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia, EarthLink is one of the largest internet service providers in the United States, serving over 500,000 internet and managed services customers nationwide. Through partnerships with several of the nation’s largest fiber and 5G providers, EarthLink has built an asset-light, nationwide network that can offer fiber internet service to more than 68 million homes.

Since Trive’s investment in EarthLink in 2018 as part of a corporate carveout, the Company has transformed from a legacy DSL and email business in precipitous decline to an asset-light connectivity platform serving over 500,000 consumers and small businesses nationwide. The Company has grown and will continue to grow based on its expanded fiber and 5G internet solutions and commitment to customer service for consumers and small businesses.

Shravan Thadani, Partner at Trive, stated, “EarthLink has been a true partnership between management and Trive in every sense of the word. The team built a differentiated, asset-light platform that gives consumers and small businesses real choice in how they get connected, and did so while standing up every function of the platform outside of its former, public parent. We are proud to have been a part of such an iconic brand’s journey and will continue to support Wave, TPO and SCP as they work with management to accelerate growth in the coming years.”

“During our partnership with Trive, we have taken one of the most trusted brands in the internet space and turned it into a trusted option for consumers and small businesses nationwide,” commented Glenn Goad, Chief Executive Officer of EarthLink. “As internet access has become one of the most important utilities in a consumer’s life, EarthLink has a renewed focus on making it easier for our customers to access the best internet options at affordable prices. Trive was critically important through and after the carve-out, and we are excited to partner with Wave, TPO and SCP to continue to grow EarthLink alongside our trusted fiber and 5G partners. Our collective goal remains the same: to provide the right technology at the right price, supported by a world-class customer experience.”

About EarthLink

EarthLink is an internet service provider offering fiber and 5G internet solutions for homes and businesses nationwide. With a focus on dependable connectivity, flexible plans, and customer-focused service, EarthLink provides broadband options designed to meet the needs of modern households and businesses. EarthLink is headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia and serves over 500,000 customers. To learn more, visit earthlink.net.

About Trive Capital

Trive Capital is a Dallas, Texas based private equity firm with more than $8 billion of regulatory assets under management. Trive focuses on investing equity and debt in what it sees as strategically viable middle-market companies with the potential for transformational upside through operational improvement.

The Trive team is comprised of seasoned investment professionals who have been involved in over 250 middle-market transactions representing in excess of $10 billion in revenue across Trive’s targeted industry sectors and situations.

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SOURCE Trive Capital

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Rondo Energy and Rio Tinto Advance Australia’s Largest Thermal Energy Storage Project

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GLADSTONE, Australia, Oct. 20, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — Rondo Energy and Rio Tinto have started front-end engineering and design on the project for a 360 MWh storage / 30 MW discharge Rondo Heat Battery, supported by a grant from the Australian Renewable Energy Agency (ARENA).

ARENA’s funding for the project will be provided in stages, with an initial $3.6 million to complete front-end engineering and design work. Following successful completion of that study, ARENA will provide up to $38 million for deployment. ARENA has also approved up to $33.3 million in conditional contingency support, which would only be made available in defined circumstances to manage specific project risks, including cost overruns and electricity costs. 

If progressed, the project would be delivered at Rio Tinto’s Yarwun alumina refinery near Gladstone, Queensland and would be one of the first large-scale demonstrations of thermal energy storage for industrial process heat globally, and a world-first for the alumina industry.

Rondo Heat Batteries use abundant, low-cost midday electricity to charge, storing energy as high-temperature heat in refractory brick, and supplying energy as 24/7 continuous process heat to industry. Typically, the heat is delivered as steam, directly into an industrial facility’s steam network. Australia regularly has 4-6 hours of surplus solar-generated renewable electricity in the middle of the day, but industrial facilities need heat 24 hours a day, not just when the sun is shining. By charging when electricity is cheap and abundant and discharging continuously, Rondo Heat Batteries turn short periods of low-cost electricity into 24/7 delivery of low-cost steam. 

For energy-intensive industries such as alumina refining, Rondo Heat Batteries create a pathway to electrification that addresses both emissions and energy costs. Because the heat battery slots into the existing steam network, the facility’s processes run exactly as before — the only thing that changes is the energy for that heat: no longer from fossil fuels, but sourced from low cost electricity instead. The Yarwun study will assess the technical and economic viability of integrating the technology into refinery operations.

“This project shows how Australia’s abundant energy can become a competitive advantage for industry,” said Dr. Kira Rundel, Rondo’s Head of Australia. “Heat batteries allow manufacturers to use low-cost electricity to produce the reliable, round-the-clock heat their operations need. Australia’s largest heat battery will show how factories can cut emissions without increasing energy costs, helping Australian industry to increase global competitiveness and supporting local manufacturing jobs.”

Rio Tinto Pacific Operations Managing Director Armando Torres said: “Reducing emissions from alumina refining is complex, particularly when it comes to generating the high-pressure steam needed for our operations.

“This study will help us determine whether thermal energy storage can provide a technically and economically viable alternative to fossil fuels for part of Yarwun’s steam requirements.

“The best way to tackle challenges of this scale is through collaboration between industry, government, and technology partners. We welcome ARENA and Rondo’s support as we assess technologies that could help reduce our Scope 1 emissions while maintaining reliable operations at Yarwun.”

About Rondo Energy

Rondo Energy delivers firm heat and power, including combined heat and power (CHP), to heavy industry and provides power solutions and long duration storage to data centers. For industrial heat applications, Rondo Heat Batteries convert 4-6 hours of low-cost electricity into continuous 24-hour, high-temperature heat, delivered as steam or hot air up to 1,000°C. The heat delivered integrates directly with existing industrial equipment and processes, eliminating on-site emissions and running on lower cost energy. Rondo heat storage can integrate with steam turbines to deliver combined heat and power (CHP) for industry, and long duration power-to-power solutions for large energy consumers such as data centers. Built on proven refractory brick as the thermal storage medium, Rondo’s platform is engineered for multi-decade operation in the most demanding industrial environments.

Rondo Heat Batteries have been delivering firm heat and power at scale since 2023, with operational facilities serving customers in fuels and cement (including steam driving turbines for electricity) in the United States and in Asia. The next unit will come online shortly – a 100 MWh Rondo Heat Battery under construction in Europe for a chemical plant. Rondo is a global company based in California, with teams across North America, Europe, the Middle East, and Australia. Providing heat and power solutions to the alumina industry is an area of focus for the company due to the strong fit of Rondo’s technology with the heat and power needs of the alumina industry.

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SOURCE Rondo Energy

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14 Organizations Earn CHIME’s Highest Digital Health Most Wired Designation for 2026

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ANN ARBOR, Mich., Oct. 20, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — The College of Healthcare Information Management Executives (CHIME), the leading professional organization for digital health leaders, today announced 14 organizations have achieved Level 10 in the 2026 CHIME Digital Health Most Wired (DHMW) survey. Powered by Digital Health Analytics (DHA), the survey is CHIME’s global assessment of digital health excellence, with Level 10 as its highest designation.

Representing health systems across the U.S., this year’s Level 10 organizations demonstrated exceptional performance across the enterprise digital ecosystem, leveraging technologies, data, infrastructure, and strategic practices shaping modern care delivery. The prestigious designation recognizes organizations that have moved beyond technology implementation to integrate digital investment across clinical and operational environments, producing measurable value for their health systems, patients, and providers.

The 2026 DHMW survey maintains a rigorous scoring methodology designed to account for differences in organizational size, complexity, risk, and resources, creating an equitable measure of performance across diverse healthcare environments. The model evaluates organizations across 10 distinct segments, measuring both the foundational elements required for digital maturity and the advanced practices that demonstrate broader adoption, integration, and value.

“Healthcare is experiencing extraordinary technological acceleration, driven in large part by the rapid adoption of AI and increasingly sophisticated digital capabilities,” said Russ Branzell, President and CEO of CHIME. “As that pace intensifies, the Digital Health Most Wired Survey continues to provide a rigorous benchmark for evaluating whether technology is translating into meaningful progress. It gives leaders a data-driven view of performance, critical gaps, and opportunities for high-impact investment while setting an industry standard of excellence for responsible technology adoption. The Level 10 organizations recognized this year exemplify the leadership and innovation required to turn digital investment into measurable improvements in care delivery.”

The 2026 Digital Health Most Wired survey includes data from more than 45,000 facilities worldwide, offering a global view of technology adoption, investment and performance across healthcare organizations and the evolving role of digital health in care delivery, operations and the patient and provider experience.

Each participating organization received a customized benchmarking report through the Digital Health Analytics (DHA) portal, offering detailed insights into performance metrics across 10 key segments:

InfrastructureSecurityAdministrationSupply chainAnalytics and data managementInteroperabilityPopulation healthPatient engagementInnovationClinical quality and safety

Fourteen healthcare organizations achieved Level 10 distinction, the highest designation awarded through the 2026 CHIME Digital Health Most Wired survey. The recipients are Baptist Health System (Jacksonville, Florida); Bon Secours Mercy Health (Ohio); MetroHealth Medical Center (Ohio); MultiCare Health System (Washington); Northeast Georgia Health System (Georgia); NYU Langone Health (New York); Parkview Health (Indiana); Roper St. Francis Healthcare Services, Inc. (South Carolina); Stanford Health Care (California); UCHealth (Colorado); UNC Health (North Carolina); University Health (Texas); University of Utah Health (Utah); and UPMC (Pennsylvania).

Collectively, the 2026 Level 10 designees reflect a healthcare environment in which digital performance increasingly depends on the alignment of technology strategy, data, infrastructure, and organizational priorities with strong leadership and a sustained commitment to innovation. Their results demonstrate how leading health systems are converting digital investment into measurable gains across clinical and operational environments while establishing the foundations required to responsibly adopt emerging technologies at scale.

CHIME will formally recognize these distinguished Level 10 honorees on November 12, 2026, during the CHIME26 Fall Forum in Denver, CO, which runs from November 11-14.

For additional details on the 2026 Digital Health Most Wired survey and the complete list of all Level 7-10 award recipients, visit dhanalytics.org.

About CHIME 
The College of Healthcare Information Management Executives (CHIME) is the leading professional organization for digital health executives and leaders. CHIME provides a trusted, collaborative environment where members and partners connect, share best practices, advance professional development, and advocate for the effective use of information and technology to improve health and care in the communities they serve. For more information, please visit chimecentral.org.

About Digital Health Analytics (DHA)
Digital Health Analytics provides healthcare organizations, technology companies, and academic researchers with the data, benchmarking, and market intelligence they need to lead digital transformation — 365 days a year. Powered by the College of Healthcare Information Management Executives (CHIME), DHA helps provider organizations supercharge their digital health transformation capabilities. For more information about DHA, visit dhanalytics.org.

For media inquiries, please contact:

Calli Dretke
Executive Vice President & Chief Digital and Marketing Officer
CHIME
734.665.0000
cdretke@chimecentral.org

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SOURCE College of Healthcare Information Management Executives (CHIME)

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