The IBM Confluent Deal is moving forward as IBM enters advanced talks to buy Confluent for about $11 billion. A report shared on Sunday said that people familiar with the talks expect the two sides to reach an agreement soon. Reuters has not yet confirmed the details, but the report has already drawn wide attention due to the scale of the deal and the rapid rise of Confluent in the data infrastructure space. IBM has shown growing interest in cloud tools, AI services, and enterprise software. A deal with Confluent would fit this strategy. Confluent is known for its strong role in real-time data streaming and has become a major partner for companies that handle large data flows. Its tools help businesses move, process, and manage data across many systems. These tools are now even more important as AI systems need fast and accurate data to work well. Confluent has reported solid growth in recent quarters. Its platform revenue increased 14% to reach $125.4 million. This rise came from strong demand in regulated sectors and from companies that use hybrid setups. The company also showed strong growth outside the United States. International revenue rose 29% to reach $126.4 million, giving global markets 42% of the company’s total revenue. These numbers show how much businesses rely on Confluent’s software to support their data needs. The company’s profits also improved. The non-GAAP operating margin grew to 9.7%, showing a rise of 340 basis points. Free cash flow margin reached 8.2%. Earnings per share came in at $0.13, which was 30% higher than expected. Confluent’s RPO, which measures future business that is already committed, rose 43% to reach $1.26 billion. This marked the fourth straight quarter of faster growth. Confluent also continued to gain large customers. The number of clients spending more than $100,000 in yearly revenue reached 1,487. The number of clients spending above $1 million rose to 234. These figures highlight the strength of long-term demand. Two products stood out in the recent results. Flink saw a 70% jump in ARR from one quarter to the next. WarpStream saw eight times more consumption. These gains show the growing trust in Confluent’s data streaming platform. The company has also built a strong place in the AI world by acting as the “data context layer” for many AI systems. More than 100 AI-native companies now use Confluent to support their models. Partners such as AWS and MongoDB added to this momentum by bringing in 25% of new business. Management did note a small issue heading into the final quarter. One large AI client moved some workloads back on-prem, which will create a slight slowdown. Even with this, Confluent kept its raised outlook for the full year. The company expects FY25 revenue between $1.113 billion and $1.114 billion. Operating margins are expected to reach 7%. Confluent said its pipeline remains strong and that it expects more gains in AI and streaming analytics. These results support the idea that Confluent has become an important player in data infrastructure. Investors have taken note, and hedge funds have also shown interest. At the end of the second quarter, 50 hedge fund portfolios held Confluent stock, up from 49 in the previous quarter. While Confluent is not on the list of the most popular hedge fund stocks, it remains a company that many investors watch. Some analysts believe other AI stocks may offer better short-term value, but Confluent’s clear growth path still appeals to many who follow the sector. If IBM completes the purchase, it would give IBM a stronger place in the fast-growing data streaming and AI markets. The move would also give IBM a modern platform that many major companies already use. As both sides continue their talks, the tech industry is watching to see how the IBM Confluent Deal will shape the future of data and AI tools.