Salesforce (CRM) has completed its acquisition of Informatica (INFA) for $8 billion, a definitive move to establish the most comprehensive, agent-ready data platform in the industry. This could be a calculated strike against platform rivals, primarily Microsoft (MSFT) and Oracle (ORCL). Salesforce is seizing control of the crucial data governance and integration layer required for enterprise-grade AI.
Meet Your ETF AI Analyst
- Discover how TipRanks' ETF AI Analyst can help you make smarter investment decisions
- Explore ETFs TipRanks' users love and see what insights the ETF AI Analyst reveals about the ones you follow.
Informatica Makes AI Smarter by Cleaning Up the Data Mess
The two companies are focusing on the biggest hurdle for businesses trying to use AI, which is getting the data ready. Salesforce calls its AI system “Agentforce,” and it uses little AI helper programs that need to think and act on customer information. If the data is messy, these AI helpers make up false answers, known as “hallucinations.” This makes them useless for important business tasks.
Informatica, known as a neutral expert in data management, provides the tools to fix this. Its key strengths are in organizing core data (MDM), checking data quality, and getting a full picture of all data across a company. By adding these tools to Agentforce, Salesforce makes sure its AI answers are based on a single, trustworthy truth. This is vital for businesses like banks or hospitals that must follow strict rules.
The Deal Puts Microsoft and Oracle on the Defensive
This acquisition directly challenges Microsoft’s Fabric, which tries to link data parts inside its Azure cloud. Microsoft’s strength is its large, integrated software package. Salesforce fights back by owning the data link and rule-setting layer that works everywhere—even outside of Azure. Informatica’s history of connecting to every major business system gives Salesforce a huge multi-cloud advantage. This means it can reach data that Microsoft often can’t access easily.
The pressure on Oracle is also high. Oracle prefers customers to use only its own systems (applications and databases). Informatica, however, specializes in combining and managing data from all kinds of different systems. By owning Informatica, Salesforce can now become the main data manager for customers who use Oracle alongside other software, pulling the focus of the data world toward the Agentforce platform.
Salesforce Controls the Gateway to Future AI Systems
Informatica was always seen as an independent, neutral system. Salesforce’s purchase turns this neutrality into a powerful weapon. The main worry for rivals and customers is being stuck with one vendor. If Salesforce makes its new data tools work best only with its own products (like Data Cloud), it could force companies to use Salesforce for all their data needs to get the best AI results. This move is designed to quickly capture a bigger share of the massive $150 billion corporate data market.
Is CRM a Buy, Sell, or Hold?
Turning to Wall Street, CRM stock has a Moderate Buy consensus rating based on 30 Buys, nine Holds, and one Sell assigned in the last three months. At $327.31, the average Salesforce stock price target implies a 39.4% upside potential.
