AT&T and GE have entered into a global alliance agreement to allow GE machines to connect to the AT&T network and cloud, creating the first highly-secure wireless communications system for GE’s “Industrial Internet.”

The companies expect their machine-to-machine (M2M) communications system will allow customers to benefit from increased productivity. Workers using the system will be able to remotely track, monitor, record and operate GE machinery, virtually anywhere in the world.

AT&T and GE plan to develop offerings that meld AT&T network technologies, single Global SIM (subscriber identity module), device expertise, security, and cloud access for industrial products like electric vehicle chargers, lighting and engines. The companies also plan to collaborate in the AT&T Foundry® innovation center to build M2M solutions for GE’s software platform Predix™ that can proactively maintain and remotely control industrial machines.

“Imagine a world where an airline for example can remotely monitor, diagnose and resolve issues with its fleet engines virtually anywhere in the world,” said Andy Geisse, Chief Executive Officer, AT&T Business Solutions. “GE’s vision of the Industrial Internet combined with our global network and leadership in machine-to-machine solutions are a powerful combination to help businesses realize the benefits of connected machines.”

“GE’s collaboration with AT&T validates our shared and common vision for the Industrial Internet,” said Bill Ruh, Vice President and Corporate Officer, GE Software. “Together, we see a future where the intersection of people, data and brilliant machines will have an enormous impact on the productivity and efficiency of industries around the world. By connecting machines to the network and the cloud, we are taking an important step to enable workers all around the world to track, monitor, and operate our machinery wirelessly and remotely through highly secure and machine-to-machine communications.”

AT&T is a global leader in developing and deploying M2M communications and has a proven M2M success record, with millions of emerging devices connected to its network, and the company has been recognized by industry analysts for its solutions deployment experience and capability. AT&T experienced a 38% increase in number of M2M customers over the last year.

In the 2012 M2M Scorecard for Communications Service Providers, analyst firm Analysys Mason named AT&T an Industry icon. The report noted “AT&T received top scores in M2M partnerships, M2M R&D and M2M organizational structure. AT&T has excelled in crafting its partnership strategy and internal organization. Its R&D focus, both in core research and solution development is superlative.”