Armand Ruiz

Director Data Science & AI Elite

Leading the Product Management org for the AI Portfolio of products focused on Generative AI and Traditional ML. Products include: watsonx.ai and watsonx.gov

Vice President of AI Platform

I am building the world's largest team of 𝐀𝐈 𝐄𝐧𝐠𝐢𝐧𝐞𝐞𝐫𝐬 by

- Recruiting hundreds of new engineers around the globe
- Reskilling our existing talent
- Offering them top-quality training in new-generation AI

Responsible for Pre-Sales Generative AI Pilots with the new IBM watsonx.ai Platform.

Director watsonx team - Client Engineering

Director of the group IBM Data Science Elite team. We prove the value of IBM Watson solutions by co-creating pilots with our customers. I managed a team of 90+ data scientists that worked on 100s of complex AI implementations.

Director Data Science

I manage a rockstar team of Product Managers leading the product portfolio of IBM Watson AI products.

Product Director - Product Management, Watson Studio and Machine Learning

Leading new Data Science products for IBM

Lead Product Manager - IBM Data Science and Watson Machine Learning

Bring Open Source data science tech to IBM stack

Product Manager for Data Science Open Source Extensibility 

In charge of Data Science projects in EMEA

Data Science Advocate - IBM Data Science & Machine Learning

Support sales in Data Science opportunities

Technical Seller Data Science & Smarter Cities

Internship to bring new innovations to IBM

Intern - Technical Software Engineer, Extreme Blue

Vodafone

Optimize 3G network coverage using Data Science

Data scientist - Radio Optimization Engineering

Federació Catalana de Tennis

Tennis Coach

VP of Product - AI Platform @IBM

As the Director of AI Engineering at IBM, I lead the watsonx team, a global group of over 1,000 AI Engineers who work on cutting-edge Generative AI solutions for various industries. With more than 12 years of experience in AI, I have a passion for democratizing practical AI skills and empowering professionals to leverage AI to transform their business.

Previously, I managed IBM's Data Science and AI Elite, delivering complex AI implementations for hundreds of clients. 

I also led the product management of IBM Watson Studio and Watson Machine Learning, an AI platform used by hundreds of customers and SaaS apps powered by AI. I hold a Master of Science in Telecommunications from Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya and speak three languages: Spanish, Catalan, French, and English.

Connect with me!

✉️ JOIN MY NEWSLETTER: Every Saturday morning, you'll get 1 actionable tip to launch and grow your AI strategies in business in less than 4 minutes. → GO HERE: https://www.nocode.ai/

📧 Email: armand@nocode.ai
X: @armand_ruiz


"It is kind of fun to do the impossible"
All opinions are my own and don't represent my employer.

Called it. 🎯 The Model Context Protocol (MCP) is officially moving to the Linux Foundation under the new Agentic AI Foundation.

I’ve been saying for a while that open governance is the only viable path forward for AI infrastructure. Today’s news proves it.

This brings Anthropic, OpenAI, Microsoft, Google, and others under one neutral banner. 

10,000+ active servers. 
97M+ SDK downloads. 
Zero vendor lock-in.

If you want an ecosystem to flourish, you have to open it up. The era of Agentic AI just got a serious upgrade.

Read the news here: https://lnkd.in/g7vy5-x2

At NeurIPS2025, Google presented Titans, a new architecture that combines the speed of RNNs with the performance of Transformers. 

The trade-off between infinite context and computational cost is the biggest hurdle in AI right now.

While Transformers are accurate but expensive to scale, and linear models are fast but lose detail, Titans delivers the best of both worlds by introducing Test-Time Memorization.

The Core Innovation: Instead of a static state, Titans uses a deep neural memory module that actively updates while running, utilizing a "Surprise Metric":
- Low Surprise: Routine data is processed efficiently without clogging memory.
- High Surprise: Anomalies and key details are instantly integrated into long-term memory.

The Results:
- Scales effectively to 2M+ token context windows.
- Outperforms larger models (including GPT-4) on extreme long-context reasoning benchmarks.
- Generalizes beyond text to genomics and time-series.

This is a move from passive processing to active, efficient learning.

Jensen just dropped a masterclass on the future of AI. 

It was great to hear from him in a long-format podcast conversation. 

Three key insights he shared:

1/ Human language is the new syntax: The "tech divide" is closing. You won't need C++ to code the future; you just need to speak.

2/ The "30-Day" Mindset: Nvidia operates like they are always 30 days from bankruptcy. This paranoia fuels their innovation and resilience.

3/ Safety is an engineering problem: Forget the sci-fi movie plots. AI safety is just like cybersecurity—as capabilities rise, so do the guardrails.

Pic taken during my epic commute

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Talks about #ai, #nocode, #deeplearning, #machinelearning, and #artificialintelligence

building AI systems

Current mood: "Joining a new company is akin to an organ transplant - and you're the new organ. If you're not thoughtful in adapting to the new situation, you could end up being attacked by the organizational immune system and rejected."

Learning fast, exploring the culture, and pushing myself to bring out the best work I’ve ever done. 

Loving the challenge. 🤩

Gemini 3 is here and it isn’t just another model release. It’s Google firing on every AI cylinder: infra, research, product, and distribution.

A few things stand out:

1.	Full-stack advantage, finally realized.
Gemini 3 is the first model shipped into Google Search on day one. That’s not just marketing ; it’s how you put frontier AI in front of billions.

2.	The agent era is no longer theoretical.
With Deep Think mode, long context, multimodal understanding, and real-time planning, Gemini 3 moves beyond chat. It’s not a chatbot. It’s a problem-solver.

3.	AI is getting better at “reading the room.”
It reflects a core shift: models are starting to grasp intent and nuance and not just data.

Benchmarks back it up: topping LMArena, solving “Humanity’s Last Exam”, setting a new bar in math and science tasks. But that’s the sideshow.

More info here: https://lnkd.in/gWeXGwhC

I cannot wait to try it out

As a leader, your job is to run a tight ship.

That doesn’t mean control. It means precision.

Clear goals. 
Clear roles. 
Clear standards.

In fast-moving teams, especially in AI, ambiguity is expensive and confusion kills momentum.  Alignment compounds it.

Scaling laws in AI are nowhere near finished. The latest Gemini 3 results show it clearly.

Pre-training: Many believed progress had plateaued. Yet the jump from 2.5 to 3.0 is one of the biggest leaps we have seen. When you improve data, architecture, and compute together, you keep breaking ceilings. No walls in sight.

Post-training: This might be the real frontier. We are still early in how we align, steer, and specialize models. The innovation curve here is just beginning, and the gains on 3.0 prove it.

Good insights from Deepmind engineers this week.

Better models are not coming slowly. They are coming faster.

Plan for continuous capability jumps, not incremental upgrades. The disruption curve is steepening.

𝗔𝗜 𝗪𝗼𝗿𝗹𝗱 𝗠𝗼𝗱𝗲𝗹𝘀 𝟭𝟬𝟭

Current AI is often described as a "statistical correlation machine." It predicts the next word or pixel based on patterns it has seen before. World Models represent a shift toward causal understanding—giving machines a way to simulate the future.

What is a World Model? Think of it as an internal flight simulator. Instead of just recognizing an environment, the AI builds a mental model of how that environment works. It uses this model to test hypotheses ("If I drop this glass, it will break") without needing to actually perform the action.

The "𝗟𝗮𝘂𝗻𝗱𝗿𝘆" Example Imagine training a robot to fold clothes.

- 𝗪𝗶𝘁𝗵𝗼𝘂𝘁 𝗮 𝗪𝗼𝗿𝗹𝗱 𝗠𝗼𝗱𝗲𝗹: The robot must physically interact with the clothes millions of times, learning through endless trial and error.

- 𝗪𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝗮 𝗪𝗼𝗿𝗹𝗱 𝗠𝗼𝗱𝗲𝗹: The robot simulates the physics of the fabric in its head. It plans the fold internally, predicts the outcome, and only moves its arm when it is confident. This results in safer, faster, and more generalizable learning.

𝗛𝗼𝘄 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝗱𝗶𝗳𝗳𝗲𝗿𝘀 𝗳𝗿𝗼𝗺 𝗰𝘂𝗿𝗿𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗟𝗟𝗠𝘀: While Large Language Models (LLMs) are masters of syntax and semantics, they often struggle with physical causality. World Models differ because:

𝟭. 𝗧𝗵𝗲𝘆 𝘀𝗶𝗺𝘂𝗹𝗮𝘁𝗲, 𝗻𝗼𝘁 𝗷𝘂𝘀𝘁 𝗿𝗲𝗰𝗮𝗹𝗹: They don't just retrieve information; they run mental experiments.

𝟮. 𝗧𝗵𝗲𝘆 𝗹𝗲𝗮𝗿𝗻 𝗹𝗮𝘄𝘀, 𝗻𝗼𝘁 𝗷𝘂𝘀𝘁 𝗿𝘂𝗹𝗲𝘀: They infer the physics of their environment from data rather than being hand-coded.

𝟯. 𝗧𝗵𝗲𝘆 𝗮𝗿𝗲 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝗮𝗰𝘁𝗶𝘃𝗲: They predict "what happens next" in a state-space, not just a token-space.

𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗥𝗼𝗮𝗱𝗺𝗮𝗽: The next frontier is the convergence of these technologies. By combining the reasoning of LLMs with the grounding of World Models, we move closer to Embodied Intelligence—software that can read, watch, plan, and act in the physical world.

it is very cool to work everyday with people in person. i think  product innovation and magic really happens with real human interaction

It’s insane how many hours I’ve seen senior technical leaders burn on architecture charts. 

All that time spent polishing pixels... now you just describe it in plain English and boom and nano banana AI handles the rest.

By the way, this is a solid, modern and agile AI stack. To build at x10 speed you need to have the right building blocks.

Fortusight, Founder | AI advisor | Ex-Dir of Llama @Meta & Ex-VP of Watson @IBM

Fortusight's AI stack

A lot of people ask me this question, I'll start with the absolute core:
1. I use Agno for multi-agent framework, they're fast, elegant and robust.
2. Exa for web grounding, I consider Exa a bigger booster than LLM choice for my use case.
3. FMP for premium, clean, reliable financial data turned into tailored tools.

For LLMs, I use O3 for multi-agent orchestration and planning, GPT 4.1 for digesting web content and supporting my A1Facts flow; Flash2.5 for structured extraction and Gemini 3 pro for synthesizing investment thesis.

I constantly progress the choices of LLMs prioritizing quality over price.

For tools, I use Cursor with Opus 4.5 (recently replacing Gemini 2.5 pro); and Figma make - which I absolutely love.

For internal ops agents, (1) managing coverage requests (2) digesting user feedback (3) analyzing product analytics (4) writing my weekly newsletter -- all built with Agno and Gemini 3 pro.

Less exciting but just as critical :-) Streamlit for front end [being replaced with react], and Firebase for database/auth/analytics -- both choices have been really critical for prototyping rapidly with my users.

The "secret sauce" is secret (lol), but I will say solving factuality in evolving market dynamics is a significant effort, and using expert-system techniques and simulations augments LLMs where they are critically weak.

Happy to share more if you have any questions -- and obviously here's the link if you want to try it out (https://lnkd.in/g7eR86dr)

AI Evals Explainer

Generated with Nano Banana Pro

Introducing SAM 3D: Powerful 3D Reconstruction for Physical World Images

and it’s not your typical 3D reconstruction tool.

It does what previous models couldn’t:
- Reconstruct real-world objects and scenes from a single image.
- Handle occlusion, indirect views, and cluttered backgrounds.
- Estimate human pose and shape with surprising accuracy.

Why does this matter?
Because for the first time, we’re seeing 3D perception at the scale, quality, and accessibility of today’s 2D models.

The architecture behind SAM 3D borrows from LLMs: pre-training on synthetic data, followed by post-training on real-world images using a human-in-the-loop ranking engine. The result is a feedback loop that continuously improves both the data and the model.

The implications stretch far beyond creative media. Robotics. E-commerce. Sports medicine. Interactive avatars. You name it.

And the best part? 

It's fast. 
Real-time fast.

Meta’s already using SAM 3D to power a “View in Room” feature in Facebook Marketplace; turning static listings into immersive experiences.

The gap between virtual and physical is shrinking. SAM 3D is a serious leap forward.

Learn more:
- 𝗥𝗲𝗮𝗱 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗮𝗻𝗻𝗼𝘂𝗻𝗰𝗲𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗯𝗹𝗼𝗴: https://lnkd.in/g8w6dvAB
- 𝗥𝗲𝗮𝗱 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗦𝗔𝗠 𝟯𝗗 𝗢𝗯𝗷𝗲𝗰𝘁𝘀 𝗥𝗲𝘀𝗲𝗮𝗿𝗰𝗵 𝗣𝗮𝗽𝗲𝗿: https://lnkd.in/gd_HQE9c
- 𝗥𝗲𝗮𝗱 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗦𝗔𝗠 𝟯𝗗 𝗕𝗼𝗱𝘆 𝗥𝗲𝘀𝗲𝗮𝗿𝗰𝗵 𝗣𝗮𝗽𝗲𝗿: https://lnkd.in/gp3p9jaf
- 𝗗𝗼𝘄𝗻𝗹𝗼𝗮𝗱 𝗦𝗔𝗠 𝟯𝗗 𝗢𝗯𝗷𝗲𝗰𝘁𝘀: https://lnkd.in/gfwmcKGK
- 𝗗𝗼𝘄𝗻𝗹𝗼𝗮𝗱 𝗦𝗔𝗠 𝟯𝗗 𝗕𝗼𝗱𝘆: https://lnkd.in/g9CPHEXJ
- 𝗘𝘅𝗽𝗹𝗼𝗿𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗣𝗹𝗮𝘆𝗴𝗿𝗼𝘂𝗻𝗱: https://lnkd.in/guSDTnU3

A sharp, modern AI tech stack for building a serious startup.

Fortusight from Shadi Copty lays out a blueprint that actually reflects where the industry is going:

multi-agent architectures, real-time grounding, premium data, and a diversified LLM strategy tuned to specific jobs rather than brand loyalty.

1/ Agno for agent frameworks.
2/ Exa for grounding.
3/  FMP for clean financial data.
4/ A portfolio of models (O3, GPT-4.1, Flash2.5, Gemini 3) each picked for its superpower.

Cursor + Opus 4.5, Figma Make, Firebase, and Streamlit/React for fast product loops.

And a layer of expert systems + simulation to fix factuality where LLMs keep failing.

This is the kind of stack that lets a small team punch far above its weight.

🚀

Open article: Financial Analysis App by fortusight.streamlit.app

🚨 Stop scrolling. The math on this is barely real.

Get a $799/mo institutional AI research platform for just $50/mo.

The catch: Only 10 spots open. 

RIAs & Fund Managers—this is a complete no-brainer. 👇

https://fortusight.ai/

I need your help 🙏

I'm looking for design partners for my baby startup that just got pre-seed funded.

If you know a wealth fund manager, a small RIA, a family office that wants to reduce their equity research costs from ~$75K to less than what they pay for starbucks coffee - share this link with them: https://fortusight.ai  

For 10 design partners, I'm giving away Fortusight for $50/month instead of $800/month for a year in exchange for feedback to help guide the product's development.

The beta with our users has been incredibly successful, with recurring usage of our equity deep dives.

This will propel the company forward, and one day I will find ways to repay your kindness - many thanks ❤️

Global Advocacy Programs Strategist

• Managed a 200-member employee advocacy program producing 500M reach and 1 Million followers to increase brand awareness
• Cultivated an engaged community, executed contests, and utilized metrics for data-driven adjustments enhancing satisfaction
• Directed contests and secured budget to offer tickets to AWS, Think, US Open, and Masters, boosting program participation
• Project managed a Washington Post paid media campaign, ensuring effective timeliness and error-free delivery across teams
• End-to-end quarterly event planning to foster community, build thought, and increase overall program engagement to 300K+

Social Media Advocacy Strategist

• Co-lead the launch of The Social League - IBM's newest employee social influencer program comprised of 188 influential IBMers on social media who are using their impact to help advance IBM's reputation
• Increased membership by 50% and engagement by 33% by optimizing membership experience using satisfaction tactics, education, and incentives
• Revamped IBM's internal website page for The Social League to provide expansive insight into the internal program by collaborating with  a designer 
• Designed and executed The Social League's newsletter through Acoustic with an 83% open rate that included: spotlighted posts from our members, IBM news, tips for social media advancement, current events 
• Created an in-depth Airtable events calendar with important dates relating to IBM and tech for our members reference as a resource
• Optimized The Social League's slack channel by partnering with other members at IBM to make it a universal channel and refreshing the weekly content sent out 
• Instituted strategy to increase member engagement growth that included an engaging Blue point competition to encourage posting activity and increased thought leadership on their platform
• Partnered with LinkedIn to provide exclusive training to our members by implementing a Social Media Best Practices Workshop that would be most helpful to them by surveying our members
• Spearheaded a Resources Powerpoint Deck with a focus on social media information on Linkedin and Twitter - including guidelines, best practices, tips, and tricks

Social Media Influencer and Advocacy Professional

• Curated an employee advocacy initiative by strengthening hand-selected IBMers’ social media skills utilizing our highly curated database
  • Accelerated IBM’s brand awareness by guiding diverse IBMers’ social platforms (250% more participants gained than initially proposed)  
  • Spearheaded presentations to stakeholders over the execution, results, and proposed takeaways of our pilot program efforts
  •  Increased participants' total engagements by 298% on average and gained 100K+ impressions in 3 weeks on LinkedIn alone
  •  Partnered with IBM’s social team to gain technical and analytical skills including Onalytica, AirTable, and Score Cards

Marketing and Communications Intern

Art by Naj

• Strategically launched, designed, and managed najamcdonald.com optimizing the user experience to drive substantial sales 
• Advanced skills in creating introspective artworks utilizing various mediums: paint, colored pencils, pastels, and charcoal
• Administer communications to secure gallery representation and promotion on social media platforms to enhance visibility
• Featured in 3x Visual Arts Gallery, 2x AT&T Gallery, 4x Daily Texan, Celebrating Art magazine, and MIM Magazine

Artist

Rowing Dock

• Partnered with marketing director to institute social strategy, advertising research, and event outreach to reach brand goals 
• Optimized event coordination creating a database encompassing 450+ potential sponsors, influencers, and volunteers
• Orchestrated paid ads on high-traffic sites to optimize customer acquisition, drive website traffic, and generate rental sales 
• Launched a social content calendar with strategic copy and professional photography featuring influencers

Marketing Strategist

AvantGarde, LLC

• Coordinated with CEO and Head Administrator to drive marketing strategies and consumer relationship management
• Piloted campaigns across the company, the CEO’s websites, and social media including LinkedIn, Facebook, and Instagram
• Generated over 100 weekly book sales for the CEO and increased her professional social media following count by 2,000+

Social Media Marketer

Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco

• Coordinated with curators to establish in-depth research project and presentation on The Age of Bronze by Auguste Rodin
• Pursued strategies to implement diversity in museum spaces with a cohort by researching, networking, and weekly seminars
• Observed Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Access (DEIA) initiative implementation through networking and analysis

Curatorial Intern

Luminous Creative Consultants

• Developed online, media brand and engaging content for accounts to accelerate social media growth for 10+ diverse clients
• Instituted strategy and managed social media communication that drove product demand for several established companies
• Orchestrated an effective email marketing campaign and a successful proposal to reduce the homepage bounce rate by 15%

Digital Marketing Assistant

Social Media Marketing Intern

ATX The Brand

• Partnered with Austin Texas Web Designs to active its brand and drive client acquisition for website and advertising services
• Responsible for compelling 150+ customers to share email addresses in order to build 1st party data and 1-to-1 relationships 
• Hosted V.I.P. events that distributed branded merchandise and samples during UT Longhorn football home game series

Marketing and Sales Intern

Hi, I'm Naja McDonald, an Influencer and Advocacy Lead at IBM, freelance artist, early career coach, and graduate of The University of Texas at Austin. With 9 diverse marketing experiences under my belt, I have developed a broad skill set in various forms of marketing including social media, brand marketing, creative, digital, graphic design, analytical, and product marketing.

As a marketer, I believe that creativity is key, and I strive to think outside of the box to bring new ideas to the table. I am determined to see my projects through from start to finish, and my strong communication skills allow me to effectively collaborate with others to achieve our goals. One of my biggest passions is diversity and advocacy. I strongly believe that every voice deserves to be heard.

As a freelance artist, I explore the intersections between culture, art, and photography to create utopian paintings. Check out my art website: najamcdonald.com

Beyond my professional work, I am also passionate about mentoring and supporting early career professionals. It brings me great joy to see others succeed and I am always happy to share my experiences and insights to help others achieve their goals.

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