Honeywell and Google Cloud Partner for AI-Driven Industrial Operations

Honeywell and Google Cloud have announced a collaboration aimed at enhancing industrial operations through artificial intelligence (AI). This partnership will integrate Google Cloud’s Gemini AI on Vertex AI with Honeywell Forge, an industrial IoT platform, to connect AI agents with assets, people, and processes.

Combining AI with Industrial Data

By leveraging the multimodal and natural language capabilities of Google Cloud’s AI platform and Honeywell Forge’s extensive industrial data, this partnership aims to provide enterprise-wide insights across various use cases. These insights will help Honeywell’s industrial customers reduce maintenance costs, boost operational productivity, and support employee upskilling.

“The path to autonomy requires assets working harder, people working smarter and processes working more efficiently,” said Vimal Kapur, Chairman and CEO of Honeywell. “By combining Google Cloud’s AI technology with our deep domain expertise--including valuable data on our Honeywell Forge platform--customers will receive unparalleled, actionable insights bridging the physical and digital worlds to accelerate autonomous operations, a key driver of Honeywell’s growth.”

“Our partnership with Honeywell represents a significant step forward in bringing the transformative power of AI to industrial operations,” said Thomas Kurian, CEO of Google Cloud. “With Gemini on Vertex AI, combined with Honeywell’s industrial data and expertise, we’re creating new opportunities to optimize processes, empower workforces and drive meaningful business outcomes for industrial organizations worldwide.” 

Honeywell and Google Cloud Collaborate to Address Labor Shortages with AI Solutions

With the mass retirement of baby boomers, the industrial sector is facing labour and skills shortages. AI is emerging as a key solution to this challenge, acting as a revenue generator rather than a job eliminator. According to Honeywell's 2024 Industrial AI Insights report, while 82% of industrial AI leaders consider their companies early adopters of AI, only 17% have fully implemented their initial AI plans. To address this gap, Honeywell and Google Cloud have partnered to provide AI agents that enhance operations and workforce efficiency, driving greater AI adoption across the industrial sector and enabling expanded automation.

AI-Powered Agents for Industry

Honeywell and Google Cloud will co-develop AI agents built on Google Cloud's Vertex AI Search. These agents are tailored to engineers, automating tasks and shortening project design cycles. They will enable users to focus on innovation and improving customer experiences. Additional AI agents, powered by large language models (LLMs), will assist technicians in resolving maintenance issues more efficiently, using multimodal data types such as images, videos, text, and sensor readings to provide quick, accurate answers.

The partnership will integrate Google Threat Intelligence, including insights from Mandiant, into Honeywell's cybersecurity products such as GARD Threat Intelligence and Secure Media Exchange (SMX). This will strengthen threat detection and improve protection for industrial customers' global infrastructure.

Advancements in Edge AI Devices

Honeywell will explore incorporating Google’s Gemini Nano model into its edge AI devices. This will enable various use cases, such as enhanced scanning, voice-guided workflows, and operational support without relying on internet or cloud connectivity. These advancements signal a new era of more intelligent industrial devices and solutions, with further developments expected in future Honeywell announcements.

By integrating AI and expanding automation, the collaboration supports Honeywell’s alignment with key industry trends, including the growing focus on automation.

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