IBM, watch out! Fujitsu uses AI to understand COBOL and automatically
generate design documents "without expert knowledge" in minutes rather than hours

Date:
Sat, 04 Apr 2026 19:20:00 +0000

Description:
Fujitsu launches AI service that automates COBOL analysis and documentation, reducing effort while supporting modernization of widely used legacy systems.

FULL STORY ======================================================================Copy link Facebook X Whatsapp Reddit Pinterest Flipboard Threads Email Share this article 0 Join the conversation Follow us Add us as a preferred source on Google Newsletter Tech Radar Pro Are you a pro? Subscribe to our newsletter Sign up to the TechRadar Pro newsletter to get all the top news, opinion, features and guidance your business needs to succeed! Become a Member in Seconds Unlock instant access to exclusive member features. Contact me with news and offers from other Future brands Receive email from us on behalf of our trusted partners or sponsors By submitting your information you agree to the Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy and are aged 16 or over. You are
now subscribed Your newsletter sign-up was successful Join the club Get full access to premium articles, exclusive features and a growing list of member rewards. Explore An account already exists for this email address, please log in. Subscribe to our newsletter Fujitsu automates COBOL documentation,
cutting analysis time by 97% The system generates design documents without requiring deep programming expertise Knowledge Graph retrieval reduces hallucinations and improves documentation completeness Fujitsu has introduced a new generative AI service which analyzes COBOL and other legacy source
code, automatically producing design documents in minutes rather than hours.

The system can operate and automatically produce design documents without expert knowledge, reducing reliance on specialized human programmers. The company says Fujitsu Application Transform powered by Fujitsu Kozuchi eliminates the need for extensive manual review, cutting the time required to understand complex source code by approximately 97%. Article continues below You may like 'Modernizing a COBOL system once required armies of consultants spending years mapping workflows... AI changes this': Anthropic says AI could help keep COBOL running for a long time to come but IBM won't be happy What if we treated the Nvidia GB10 as an employee: AI could remove reporting roles entirely from businesses with thousands of job losses, here's how this reviewer did it AI & cost of legacy systems in UK banking Accuracy and readability improvements The service aims to provide a clear understanding of existing system specifications, offering organizations a practical tool to support modernization strategies efficiently.

Compared with analysis conducted solely by general generative AI tools , Fujitsus proprietary solution enhances the quality of generated
documentation.

This system links large volumes of source code through a Knowledge Graph Enhanced retrieval system.

With this, it prevents omissions and hallucinations, ensuring the generated design documents reflect all relevant system details. Are you a pro?
Subscribe to our newsletter Sign up to the TechRadar Pro newsletter to get
all the top news, opinion, features and guidance your business needs to succeed! Contact me with news and offers from other Future brands Receive email from us on behalf of our trusted partners or sponsors By submitting
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This approach improves comprehensiveness by 95% and boosts readability by
60%, producing documentation that is easier for teams to interpret and act upon.

These improvements are particularly critical when dealing with COBOL, a programming language designed by Dr. Grace Hopper in 1959 that has an estimated 850 billion lines of code .

Although over 65 years old, COBOL remains widely used , and businesses remain heavily reliant on this venerable programming system. What to read next
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It often powers the core transaction systems of banks, insurers, and government agencies without public visibility.

During the pandemic, the United States raised the prospect of a shortage of COBOL programmers to help manage critical systems, showing its importance.

Before the Fujitsu system, Anthropic noted that AI could help keep COBOL running for a long time.

Fujitsu plans to provide support services to guide organizations in deploying the system effectively - this year, the company intends to introduce features for rebuilding existing source code for future use.

The system will automatically rewrite code and support ongoing operation and maintenance.

This sequential development ensures that companies can not only understand legacy systems but also adapt and maintain them with minimal manual intervention.

We see this announcement as an initiative that realistically advances the modernization of our legacy systems we have come to recognize the potential
of this technology, said Toshihiro Horiuchi, Managing Executive Officer, SMBC Nikko Securities Inc.

For many engineering teams, this announcement represents a clear advantage, but IBM, a major vendor of COBOL-powered mainframes and enterprise systems , needs to revise its strategy or risk being outpaced in automated legacy
system modernization. Follow TechRadar on Google News and add us as a preferred source to get our expert news, reviews, and opinion in your feeds. Make sure to click the Follow button!

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Link to news story: https://www.techradar.com/pro/ibm-watch-out-fujitsu-uses-ai-to-understand-cobo l-and-automatically-generate-design-documents-without-expert-knowledge-in-minu tes-rather-than-hours


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