IBM announced plans on Monday to invest $150 billion in the United States over the next five years, with $30 billion allocated specifically for the production of mainframe and quantum computers. This investment comes amid pressure from the Trump administration for technology firms to expand their U.S. manufacturing operations.
The announcement was made following Nvidia's recent declaration of a $500 billion investment, which includes producing all of its artificial intelligence supercomputers in the United States. IBM’s CEO, Arvind Krishna, emphasized that this commitment reinforces IBM's position as a leader in advanced computing and AI capabilities.
However, the fulfillment of these investment pledges remains uncertain, as historical patterns show that similar commitments from major firms during Trump’s first term have often fallen short. An example includes a $10 billion project in Wisconsin by Foxconn that did not meet initial expectations.
Since Trump took office, several tech companies have regularly announced large investments in U.S. operations. Recently, Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company stated intentions to invest $100 billion over the next four years to enhance production capacity in Arizona. Earlier this year, Apple expressed plans to invest $500 billion and hire 20,000 employees in the U.S., along with opening a factory in Texas to support its AI initiatives.
In January, Trump introduced a collaborative project involving OpenAI, SoftBank, and Oracle aimed at creating $100 billion in computing infrastructure for AI. This effort expands upon the prior significant investments in U.S. data centers, despite being initiated before his administration.
The Trump administration has been advocating for companies to increase domestic production, particularly targeting imports from China. Nonetheless, it has exempted various electronic products, including smartphones and semiconductors, from tariffs imposed during the ongoing trade conflict.