PEX Network’s weekly bulletin rounds up the latest industry vendor news including product releases/updates, mergers and acquisitions, partnerships and leadership changes.
This week includes:
- IBM & GlobalFoundries reach lawsuit settlement
- A2MAC1 partners with Microsoft to transform automotive engineering processes
- Celonis appoints Geoffrey Gabelle as new head of partnerships
- Aptean adds intelligent automation capabilities with JobRouter acquisition
- OPEX Corporation celebrates 50 years of innovation
- Esker appoints Dan Reeve to executive committee
- Naviant acquires intelligent automation practice
- Antti Karjalainen departs Robocorp, Sema4.ai for Digital Workforce Services
IBM & GlobalFoundries reach lawsuit settlement
Tech giant and process mining provider IBM announced it has reached a lawsuit settlement with semiconductor firm GlobalFoundries, resolving all litigation matters inclusive of breach of contract, trade secrets and intellectual property claims between the two companies. The settlement marks the end of an ongoing legal dispute and allows the companies to “explore new opportunities for collaboration” in areas of mutual interest, according to a press release. The details of the settlement are confidential but both parties expressed satisfaction with the outcome.
“We are pleased to have reached a positive resolution with IBM, and we look forward to new opportunities to build upon our long-standing partnership to further strengthen the semiconductor industry, commented Dr Thomas Caulfield, president and CEO of GlobalFoundries. Resolving these disputes is a significant step forward for our companies and will allow us to both focus on future innovations that will benefit our organizations and customers,” added Arvind Krishna, chairman and CEO of IBM.
Watch psychologist, organizational developer and thought leader Leona Holzbecher discuss accountability in process management
A2MAC1 partners with Microsoft to transform automotive engineering processes
A2MAC1 announced a new collaboration with Microsoft to support automotive transformation via cloud-based solutions that automate and integrate benchmarking and cost-value engineering processes. A2MAC1’s new cost and sustainability suite (CSS), now available on the Microsoft Azure Marketplace, enables customers to accelerate vehicle development cycles, save cost and optimize carbon footprint through an integrated experience.
“This collaboration builds on Microsoft’s expertise in cloud and artificial intelligence (AI) as well as A2MAC1’s leadership position in automotive benchmarking, insights, product design and sustainable cost-value engineering” said Patrick Katenkamp, CEO of A2MAC1. “This is exactly the capabilities customers need to ‘decode the future’ and successfully compete during times of rapid change.”
“We are pleased that Microsoft Azure is A2MAC1’s preferred cloud platform and that both solutions are available in the Azure Marketplace,” said Dayan Rodriquez, Corporate Vice President, Manufacturing & Mobility, Microsoft. Combining A2MAC1’s platform with the speed, scalability and intelligence of Azure will enable customers to accelerate industrial innovation, added Dayan Rodriquez, corporate VP, manufacturing and mobility at Microsoft.
Watch Ishneet Kaur, director of innovation at National Grid, reflect on balancing innovation and operations during change
Celonis appoints Geoffrey Gabelle as new head of partnerships
Process intelligence and process mining vendor Celonis appointed Geoffrey Gabelle as new head of partnerships in France, Middle East and Africa. Gabelle will focus on strengthening Celonis’ presence in these markets by establishing and consolidating high value-added collaborations with its consulting, reselling and integration partners, he stated. “The Celonis process intelligence platform is more relevant than ever, enabling organizations to better leverage their data to improve performance, foster end-to-end collaboration between teams and strengthen their resilience,” Gabelle added.
Aptean adds intelligent automation capabilities with JobRouter acquisition
Enterprise software solutions vendor Aptean announced the acquisition of JobRouter, a provider of cloud-based intelligent automation solutions. Aptean acquired JobRouter from Main Capital Partners, a private equity firm managing funds in Northwestern Europe and North America. The addition of JobRouter expands Aptean’s process automation capabilities and will enable it to better serve the needs of its enterprise resource planning (ERP) customers, according to a press release.
“Aptean is very excited to announce its expanded ability to offer best-in-class intelligent process automation solutions to its global customer base,” said TVN Reddy, CEO at Aptean. “With the addition of JobRouter, Aptean further establishes itself as a vendor of choice in solving complex business issues.”
The combination of JobRouter and Aptean provides an exciting opportunity to push global expansion and address the process automation needs of Aptean’s large base of customers, added Axel Ensinger and Marcus Nagel, co-CEOs of JobRouter. “As part of Aptean, we will continue to invest in our long-term growth and provide our customers and partners with access to numerous complementary solutions.”
Watch thought leader Doug Shannon discuss the impact of AI on intelligent automation
OPEX Corporation celebrates 50 years of innovation
Automation vendor OPEX Corporation marked 50 years of developing innovative technology solutions for customers. “We’re proud to say that since Al Stevens acquired the company in 1975, OPEX has been family-owned and operated,” the company stated. OPEX provides warehouse and document automation solutions built to drive infrastructure efficiency. “Our family-owned company has over 1,500 committed employees who work together to innovate, manufacture, install and service products that are helping transform industries every day,” the firm said.
Register for All Access: Operational Excellence 2025
Esker appoints Dan Reeve to executive committee
Dan Reeve joined the executive committee of automation solutions provider Esker. Reeve serves as VP of sales North America and has successfully managed a team of sales directors who have helped facilitate over 40 percent of the company’s revenue for the past 10 years. “This appointment is a testament to Dan’s exceptional work, strong leadership and significant contributions to the growth of our business and solutions,” said Jean-Michel Bérard, CEO at Esker. His expertise in shaping Esker’s sales strategy, dedication to delivering outstanding customer service and ability to foster lasting customer relationships make him an invaluable asset to our committee, he added.
“I’m delighted and grateful for this opportunity,” Reeve said. “We are seeing tremendous interest from customers looking to automate business processes. I’m looking forward to using this opportunity to share the valuable insights that business leaders, sales leaders and reps share with me to better serve our customers and help drive Esker’s continued growth.”
Watch Tariq Munir, APAC financial planning transformation lead at PepsiCo, outline measuring the impact of intelligent automation
Naviant acquires intelligent automation practice
Intelligent automation solutions firm Naviant signed an agreement to acquire LBMC Technology Solutions’ OnBase software practice. LBMC is an award-winning software consulting and IT solutions services practice based in Nashville TN. “We are committed to providing the same outstanding support and delivery of services our customers have grown to expect, and we look forward to personally welcoming LBMC customers and staff into the Naviant community,” said Michael Carr, president and CEO of Naviant.
LBMC are in “great hands” with Naviant, according to Mike Sole, intelligent automation director of LBMC. “Naviant’s experienced resources alongside their expanded offerings will help take our customers’ intelligent automation to the next level.”
Register for All Access: Intelligent Automation 2025
Antti Karjalainen departs Robocorp, Sema4.ai for Digital Workforce Services
Antti Karjalainen, founder of robotic process automation (RPA) provider Robocorp and co-founder of AI agents firm Sema4.ai, is stepping away from the companies to take on a new role as chief technology officer (CTO) of Digital Workforce Services. Digital Workforce Services helps businesses manage their operations through automation.
“I’m incredibly proud of the product, team, culture and customer relationships we built at Robocorp and Sema4,” Karjalainen wrote. “Automation is undergoing a seismic shift with generative AI.” Generative AI and AI agents are reshaping how software is built, he added.
“In the world of automation, agents will play a transformative role in redefining how knowledge work is accomplished and how businesses operate. Through agents, we have an extraordinary opportunity to rethink nearly every aspect of the digital world. This is why I’m transitioning from building technology and tools to building solutions. Now, in my new role, my mission is to help transform the company from a digital workforce into a full on agentic workforce.”
READ MORE PEX VENDOR NEWS
[inlinead-1]