IBM updates Granite Switch adapters, leaving base model untouched

IBM has released Granite Switch 4.1.1, a patch release for its modular Switch architecture, alongside an updated speech recognition model and an updated Decision adapter. The notable part is how quickly the update shipped: apart from training the new components, nothing was recomputed, and the base model is untouched.

Granite Switch 4.1, released just over a week earlier, showed that the Switch architecture lets users configure a language model with specialized, cache-efficient adapters, adding new expertise on a single endpoint. Version 4.1.1 is a patch in the ordinary software sense. It is fully backwards compatible with 4.1, requires no migration, and contains incremental improvements under the hood.

IBM also updated two other components. The new Granite Speech ASR model provides multilingual speech-to-text across 10 languages with native punctuation and capitalization, so transcripts are ready for downstream models without a formatting pass. The updated Decision adapter in granitelib-core features improved overall performance on the Jev Decision Index test set.

IBM says the pattern extends well beyond patch releases to IBM-provided models. The company is working on tutorials and an Adapter SDK so developers and third-party providers can build their own adapters, iterate on versions, test features, and ship updates the way they ship software. IBM says more will follow soon.

Key Features at a Glance

• Backwards compatibility: Fully compatible with Granite Switch 4.1, so upgrading requires no migration.
• Multilingual speech-to-text: Covers 10 languages with native punctuation and capitalization, so transcripts need no formatting pass before reaching downstream models.
• Updated Decision adapter: Improved overall performance on the Jev Decision Index test set, delivered in granitelib-core.
• Adapter composition: The base model stays untouched, and users compose the adapters they want and deploy them on a single endpoint.
• Adapter SDK (in development): Tutorials and an SDK are planned so developers and third-party providers can build and version their own adapters.

Availability

The announcement does not give a release date or pricing. The models are published on Hugging Face: the Granite Switch 4.1.1 model page, the updated Granite Speech ASR model, granitelib-core, and the Granite Switch model collection. IBM also points to a Speech-to-Decisions demo on Hugging Face that showcases the new multilingual and punctuation capabilities.