Wayne State University and Kyndryl announce collaboration to advance AI-driven manufacturing and workforce innovation in Detroit

IntelliMake research hub will be established to develop and drive AI demos and projects

DETROIT and NEW YORK, Jan. 13, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- Wayne State University, a premier urban public research institution, and Kyndryl (NYSE:KD), a leading provider of mission-critical enterprise technology services, today announced a multi-year collaboration to establish the IntelliMake research hub and pilot-scale factory within the James and Patricia Anderson College of Engineering at Wayne State University. Through this collaboration, Kyndryl and Wayne State will co-develop and demonstrate intelligent and agentic AI manufacturing technologies on campus; host joint workshops on AI, cybersecurity and digital twins; and create demonstration pods at the IntelliMake lab.

According to Kyndryl's 2025 Readiness Report, 87% of leaders expect AI to reshape jobs within a year, yet only 29% feel their workforce is ready, underscoring the importance of proactive change management. Building on Kyndryl's launch of organizational change management services and enhanced Kyndryl Agentic AI Framework, Wayne State and Kyndryl will train teams in agentic AI for manufacturing through hands-on experience and demonstrate customer challenges in the lab to showcase the real-world solutions Kyndryl can develop beyond prototypes and decks.

"Despite significant advances in automation, many manufacturing operations remain rigid, siloed and reactive," said Onofrio Pirrotta, SVP & Managing Director, Kyndryl. "Through our collaboration with Wayne State on IntelliMake, we are working to replace brittle, fixed automation with resilient, people-centered innovation by combining people, process, and technology in one integrated environment. This will also give customers a hands-on view of what's possible by investing in and training the next generation of AI talent to lead the transformation."

"As an R1 university located in manufacturing heartland with strong industry ties, Wayne State is uniquely positioned to tackle the nation's manufacturing and workforce challenges," said Dr. Ali Abolmaali, dean of the James and Patricia Anderson College of Engineering. "IntelliMake exemplifies our commitment to advancing AI, automation and education — while preparing engineers for the factories of the future."

In its first phase, IntelliMake will combine advanced computing with modular orchestration to demonstrate how intelligent agents can detect, adapt to and recover from disruptions. The autonomous manufacturing and assembly line will reduce scrap and rework, improve quality, and empower workers with more responsive tools and real-time insights. Kyndryl will help orchestrate these systems by integrating technologies like Kyndryl Bridge for monitoring and management of the end-to-end infrastructure that will run the mock assembly line.

IntelliMake's mission is to position Detroit and Michigan at the forefront of the nation's projected $10 trillion smart manufacturing opportunity, where AI agents, robotics and digital twins drive self-optimizing and reconfigurable factories. The collaboration was made possible through coordination among Wayne State's James and Patricia Anderson College of Engineering, the Office of the Provost, the Division of Research and Innovation, Sponsored Programs Administration, and the Industry Partnerships Office to advance university-wide innovation and help IntelliMake's discoveries translate into scalable industrial applications.

About Wayne State University

Wayne State University is one of the nation's pre-eminent public research universities in an urban setting. Through its multidisciplinary approach to research and education, and its ongoing collaboration with government, industry and other institutions, the university seeks to enhance economic growth and improve the quality of life in the city of Detroit, state of Michigan and throughout the world. For more information, visit wayne.edu.  

About Kyndryl

Kyndryl (NYSE:KD) is a leading provider of mission-critical enterprise technology services, offering advisory, implementation and managed service capabilities to thousands of customers in more than 60 countries. As the world's largest IT infrastructure services provider, the company designs, builds, manages and modernizes the complex information systems that the world depends on every day. For more information, visit www.kyndryl.com.

Kyndryl press contact

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SOURCE Kyndryl