IBM - 1792 Exchange

Rating Overview

IBM is Medium Risk.

International Business Machines Corporation (IBM) is Medium Risk. The company often yields to political activism in shaping corporate governance, potentially alienating consumers, dividing employees, and harming shareholders. The company elevates merit, excellence, and integrity ahead of race and identity-based policies. IBM occasionally embraces corporate initiatives that redirect its central focus from business goals to partisan policies and divisive issues at times. This approach fails to safeguard free exercise, free speech, and free enterprise.

Rating Criteria

Corporate Weaponization Risk Levels
Criteria	Risk Level
Cancellations	Lower Risk
Discriminatory Philanthropy	High Risk
Employment Protection	Medium Risk

Corporate Weaponization ⓘ

Corporate Governance and Public Policy Risk Levels
Criteria	Risk Level
Advocacy Bias	Medium Risk
Funding	High Risk
Political Actions	Medium Risk

Corporate Governance and Public Policy ⓘ

Rating Criteria Detail

Criteria Risk Level Rationale

Corporate Weaponization

Criteria:

Has canceled customers, suppliers, or vendors due to their political views or religious beliefs OR corporately boycotts, divests, or sanctions regions, people groups, or industries.

Risk Level:

Lower

Rationale:

IBM was a member of the GARM, a global media alliance that frequently demonetized and suppressed conservative content online. However, in April 2025, IBM pledged political and religious neutrality in its marketing, including in its media-buying and content policies (1)(2)(3)(4)(5). However, the company has not publicly canceled customers, suppliers, or vendors based on political views or religious beliefs (6).

Criteria:

Charitable giving (including employee matching programs) policies or practices discriminate against charitable organizations based on views or religious beliefs.

Risk Level:

High

Rationale:

IBM will not match gifts to religious organizations (1). The company likely uses Benevity as its charitable giving platform. Benevity vets charities according to the Southern Poverty Law Center’s Hate List, which includes mainstream libertarian, conservative, family, and religious advocacy organizations (2)(3)(4).

Criteria:

Employment policies fail to protect against viewpoint or other discrimination and/or are ideological in nature.

Risk Level:

Medium

Rationale:

IBM had a history of divisive policies, including discriminatory hiring practices and internships. However, in April 2025, the company pledged to end DEI in its hiring practices and supply chain, remove diversity goals from its executive compensation plans, end Allyship training, end its corporate policy encouraging preferred pronoun usage, stop using the term LatinX, and focus on growing its small business and veteran owned business supplier base (1)(2)(3)(4). In June 2025, America First Legal filed a lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California for race, sex, and age discrimination against John Loeffler (5). The company does not provide viewpoint protections for its employees (6).

Corporate Governance and Public Policy

Criteria:

Uses corporate reputation to support causes, organizations, or policies hostile to freedom of expression.

Risk Level:

Medium

Rationale:

IBM had a history of using its reputation to promote divisive causes. However, in April 2025, the company pledged to stop filling out the so-called “Corporate Equality Index”, end its Diversity Council, dissolve its DEI department, end its “I’m In Allyship” campaign, and end its DEI “Be Equal” Podcast (1)(2)(3). IBM opposed various state and local legislation intended to protect parental rights, girls’ sports, bathroom facilities, and gendered spaces (4)(5). The company has used its corporate image to express opposition to state-led voter and election security initiatives (6). The company has also been an open supporter of legislation involving police and immigration reform for DREAMERS (7). CEO Arvind Krishna is a member of the Business Roundtable and Former CEO Ginni Rometty signed its 2019 Statement on the Purpose of a Corporation, which promotes stakeholder capitalism over traditional obligations to shareholders (8)(9). The company scored a 100 out of 100 on the 2023-2024 Corporate Equality Index (CEI) from the Human Rights Campaign (HRC), a political stakeholder group (10)(11).

Criteria:

Uses corporate funds to advance ideological causes, organizations, or policies hostile to freedom of expression.

Risk Level:

High

Rationale:

IBM enables charitable gift-matching donations to Planned Parenthood (1). The company is a Bronze sponsor of Out and Equal and a founding corporate partner of the National LGBT Chamber of Commerce (2)(3). The company was a member of the GARM, a global media alliance that frequently demonetized and suppressed conservative content online. However, in April 2025, IBM pledged political and religious neutrality in its marketing, including in its media-buying and content policies (4)(5)(6)(7)(8).

Criteria:

Uses corporate political actions and/or financial contributions for ideological, non-business purposes.

Risk Level:

Medium

Rationale:

IBM has used its political action for divisive causes. However, in April 2025, the company removed its endorsement of the so-called “Equality Act” which legalizes men in women’s spaces (1)(2)(3). The company does not operate a PAC at this time (4)(5). In 2024, 2023, 2022, 2021, 2020, and 2019, the company lobbied for the Equality Act (6)(7)(8)(9)(10)(11).