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IBM CEO Arvind Krishna Advocates for Global Trade, AI, and Quantum Computing at SXSW 2025

IBM CEO Arvind Krishna addressed key global economic and technological issues at SXSW 2025, emphasizing the importance of global trade, immigration policies, and AI’s evolving role in society. Despite growing concerns over protectionist policies in the U.S., Krishna asserted that embracing international trade and talent exchange would be crucial for economic growth.

Drawing from historical economic theories, Krishna argued that increasing global trade by 10% could contribute to a 1% rise in local GDP, reinforcing the need for interconnected economies. He also stressed the importance of welcoming foreign talent into the U.S., advocating for policies that encourage international students and skilled workers to contribute to domestic innovation.

On AI, Krishna offered a tempered view, disputing predictions that AI will soon write 90% of all code. Instead, he estimated that AI-assisted coding would account for around 20-30% of software development, making programmers more productive rather than replacing them entirely. This perspective contrasts with previous comments he made in 2023, when IBM announced plans to slow hiring in areas that AI could automate.

Krishna also discussed the future of AI efficiency, highlighting emerging techniques like those developed by Chinese AI startup DeepSeek, which could significantly reduce the energy consumption of AI models. However, he remained skeptical about AI achieving artificial general intelligence (AGI), stating that while AI can process existing knowledge, it lacks the ability to generate groundbreaking new insights like human scientists.

Instead, Krishna positioned quantum computing as the key to future scientific advancements, a stance aligning with IBM’s strategic investments in the field. His views stand in contrast to OpenAI CEO Sam Altman’s, who has suggested that superintelligent AI could revolutionize human progress within the next few years.

The discussion at SXSW 2025 highlighted the ongoing debates surrounding AI’s future, global economic policies, and the role of emerging technologies in shaping the world’s next wave of innovation.