Enterprises today are adopting generative AI faster than before. According to an IBM survey, “83% of C-suite executives say modernizing applications is central to their organization’s business strategy. And 89% say that using generative AI in application modernization projects will drive growth by improving existing products and services and building new capabilities.”

IBM^® watsonx Code Assistant^™ for Z is built to assist developers, architects and system programmers in modernizing their mainframe applications through the use of generative AI and automation. Clients can leverage watsonx Code Assistant for Z to help understand, explain, refactor, optimize, transform and validate their COBOL code and accelerate the application modernization journey.

Available now, IBM watsonx Code Assistant for Z 2.1 further assists developers and system programmers in optimizing COBOL application performance (Code Optimization Advice) and understand JCL code (Code Explanation for JCL).

Analyze, prioritize and resolve COBOL performance issues faster with Code Optimization Advice

Code Optimization Advice is designed to streamline COBOL application development and enhance performance. This capability addresses the challenges faced by developers working with COBOL applications and empowers them to deliver efficient and modern code.

With Code Optimization Advice, client teams can:

• Prioritize and resolve performance issues efficiently, through an in-depth analysis of COBOL modules with code optimization.
• Gain clear insights into areas requiring improvement with a line-by-line analysis.
• Improve productivity through ranking and prioritization of performance problems based on impact.

Learn how a developer can find, prioritize and fix performance issues faster using watsonx Code Assistant for Z.

Ease the understanding and documentation of JCL code and onboard system programmer swiftly with code explanation for JCL

In June, IBM announced the availability of COBOL code explanation. IBM watsonx Code Assistant for Z Code Explanation is now enhanced to include support for JCL, enabling system programmers to gain knowledge of JCL and Z automation assets faster. Leveraging generative AI with a purpose-trained large language model (LLM), code explanation for JCL produces natural language explanations in real time, simplifying and accelerating the time it takes to understand and document an application.

With Code Explanation for JCL, client teams can:

• Facilitate modernization strategy with deeper insights into programs through the explanations provided.
• Reduce reliance on senior system programmers by providing English explanations of the JCL steps to a less experienced user, accelerating time to understand the application.
• Streamline documentation with code explanation, inserting JCL explanations as comments and leverage for documentation, facilitating seamless updates and knowledge retention.

Generative AI can help business leaders stay ahead, and watsonx Code Assistant for Z is designed to help accelerate mainframe application modernization. With its latest version, watsonx Code Assistant for Z introduces code optimization advice and JCL code explanation.

These enhancements enable users to analyze, prioritize and resolve COBOL performance issues swiftly, and gain real-time, natural language explanations for JCL, simplifying application understanding and documentation. This allows enterprises to gain agility and move faster, increase productivity, and expand the talent pool of mainframe developers and system programmers.