According to TechCrunch, IBM is on a roll. This week, Big Blue quietly added another AI startup to its cart: Seek AI, a NYC-based company that lets users chat with their enterprise data using plain, everyday language. That’s right, no more SQL scripts or begging your data team for answers. Just type a question, and Seek figures out the rest. Think ChatGPT, but for databases.
Founded in 2021 by Sarah Nagy, Seek AI had already raised $10M from Battery Ventures and friends. But now? It’s graduating to the big leagues. IBM didn’t disclose the amount it paid for Seek, but the deal places the startup at the center of Watsonx AI Labs — IBM’s new NYC-based AI accelerator and think tank.
Sarah posted on LinkedIn that Seek will help IBM scale mission-critical AI tools and grow the next generation of AI devs. Translation: This is more than an acqui-hire — it’s a signal that IBM is serious about making enterprise AI accessible, conversational, and useful.
This acquisition isn’t random. IBM is doubling down on AI for business, and it’s working — Q1 earnings beat expectations, with AI being a key growth driver. Watsonx AI Labs is now its new hub for collaboration, development, and potentially even some VC funding (yes, IBM Ventures is part of this initiative, with a $500M enterprise AI fund on standby).
As for Seek AI? Its software will now live at One Madison, IBM’s sleek Manhattan HQ. And its chatbot-style interface will likely become part of IBM’s AI future — a future where asking your company’s database a question is as easy as texting your best friend.
