Wednesday, October 8, 2014

IBM officially opens its Watson division at 51 Astor Place today


[Photo via @IBM back in January when it was stupid cold out]

That's right, IBM opens its new business unit surrounding its "Jeopardy"-ass-kicking super computer at 51 Astor Place — aka the IBM Watson Building.

According to New York Business Journal last evening, this marks "a milestone in the company's $1 billion effort to monetize its cognitive computing power and remake its image for a new era."

The article also notes that 600 employees have moved into the 120,000-square-foot space. You can read more about their offices here. (They have an incubator!)

We're sure we'll see the gang at the Grassroots later. $1 off pints; $2 off pitchers for happy hour!

Previously on EV Grieve:
My dear Watson: 51 Astor Place is now the IBM Watson building

Meanwhile at the IBM Watson building, the Jeff Koons rabbit sculpture has arrived for the lobby
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4 comments:

  1. AnonymousOctober 8, 2014 at 10:29 AM

    Well, that explains that odd curved blue-lit thing a few floors up that I now see every time I pass.

    ReplyDelete
  2. blue glassOctober 8, 2014 at 10:32 AM

    watson is the computer that will do all the diagnosing for doctors as soon as it eats all the data out there - according to IBM's tv ads.
    oh well,

    ReplyDelete
  3. JillOctober 8, 2014 at 8:36 PM

    Is it getting uglier over time or are my eyes adjusting to the glare so I'm seeing it more clearly. Either way, glad the computer people have moved in, maybe we'll get a Shake Shack and West Elm sooner than I could dream. Magical.

    ReplyDelete
  4. eastvillagesirenOctober 8, 2014 at 11:34 PM

    I walked by two days ago when they had a bunch of suited guys welcoming the employees, and one of them actually said, "I'm not a tech guy..," which is a bit ironic considering it's IBM. Oh, and none of the greeters or arrivals seemed to be under 30. Hey, I'm over 30, so it's not ageism, just bewilderment that there were no earnest twenty-somethings entering The Death Star (as we locals like to call it).

    ReplyDelete

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