Encore: Can IBM Beat Microsoft and Google in the Quantum Computing Race?

Encore: Can IBM Beat Microsoft and Google in the Quantum Computing Race?

From Bold Names by The Wall Street Journal

February 13, 2026 · 36 min

About this episode

IBM's CEO Arvind Krishna discusses the company's strategy in quantum computing and its competition with Microsoft and Google.

IBM has made a comeback in the past six years under the leadership of CEO Arvind Krishna. That's thanks to success in its hybrid cloud business and consulting services. But even as the company is reinventing itself again for the AI era, Krishna is already betting that quantum computing is the next big thing. Will Big Blue succeed against rivals like Microsoft and Google who are racing to make their own quantum breakthroughs? And how is the company learning from its past mistakes with Watson AI? Krishna joins the WSJ's Christopher Mims and Tim Higgins on the Bold Names podcast. To watch the video version of this episode of Bold Names, visit our WSJ Podcasts YouTube channel or the video page of WSJ.com. Check Out Past Episodes: This CEO Says Global Trade Is Broken. What Comes Next? What This Former USAID Head Had to Say About Elon Musk and DOGE ‘Businesses Don’t Like Uncertainty’: How Cisco Is Navigating AI and Trump 2.0 Why This Tesla Pioneer Says the Cheap EV Market 'Sucks' Let us know what you think of the show. Email us at BoldNames@wsj.com Sign up for the WSJ's free Technology newsletter. Read Christopher Mims’s Keywords column. Read Tim Higgins’s column. Learn more about your…

People in this episode

Hosts: Christopher Mims, Tim Higgins

Guest: Arvind Krishna

Topics covered

  • quantum computing
  • AI
  • cloud computing
  • technology

Keywords

  • IBM
  • Microsoft
  • Google
  • Watson AI
  • hybrid cloud

Mentioned in this episode

Products: Watson AI, IBM

Books & works: Keywords

More episodes of Bold Names

Explore listener stats, chart rankings, contacts and more on the Bold Names podcast page.