IBM Watson

Personifying AI

Our Role

Art Direction, Brand Identity, Brand Writing, Concept Development, Video Direction

Collaborators

Onformative, Universal Everything, Colors and the Kids

No artifice in intelligence

IBM Watson on national television

Upending the world of work

A living brand for a thinking system

No artifice in intelligence. IBM Watson is a groundbreaking cognitive computing system.

IBM Watson on national television. Watson was first celebrated for correctly answering the million dollar question on the television show, Jeopardy.

Upending the world of work. It has since become a vital support tool in healthcare treatment, finance, marketing, and beyond.

A living brand for a thinking system. Athletics designed Watsonʼs moving identity to personify the systemʼs behaviors and DNA.

When human meets machine

IBM Watson is pioneering the symbiotic relationship between human and machine. Seeking to transcend fears associated with automation, IBM Watson is the leading example of artificial intelligence’s positive potential across industries. Capable of comprehensively reimagining the way we do business, Watson puts us at the cusp of a new, data-driven industrial revolution.

Watson is named for IBM’s first CEO, Thomas J. Watson

Evoking a sense of wonder

Understanding that the brand would have to evoke a sense of profound wonder befitting a technology of this caliber, we designed a cloud-like mass of pulsating nodes, symbolic of data, surrounded by a series of orbiting rings, symbolic of Watson’s ability to instantaneously parse and process this information into useful outcomes.

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The foundation for things to come

Our team was inspired by themes of trust and transparency, aiming to personify this abstract, powerful tool, and reflect Watsonʼs ever-evolving impact on the world we live in. Since launching, the IBM Watson design system has served as an exemplar for subsequent IBM sub-brands.

“This is a great identity for a product that’s really difficult to market.”
Under Consideration

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