Krishna Challenges AI Giant with Smaller, Specialized Models
Arvind Krishna, chairman and CEO of IBM, has been named among TIME's 100 Most Influential People in AI for 2026. This recognition comes after he shared his vision for artificial intelligence at a 2025 interview with TIME.
Krishna, an IIT Kanpur graduate, believes that the future of AI will not necessarily belong to companies spending billions on training massive general-purpose models. Instead, he thinks that smaller, specialised models can be successful when designed for specific tasks and industries like finance, healthcare, and manufacturing.
IBM's AI strategy differs from others in the industry, which are focused primarily on building the largest models possible. Krishna argues that smaller models requiring less computing power can still achieve high accuracy and reliability when tailored to particular enterprise applications.
Krishna's career has followed the evolution of computing from traditional enterprise systems towards cloud computing, AI, and now generative AI. He has extensive experience in artificial intelligence, cloud, and quantum computing, making him a significant figure in shaping how businesses adopt AI.