Why Capgemini’s AI move could make mainframes obsolete faster than anyone expected

Capgemini’s gen AI-powered mainframe modernization aims to transform legacy systems with speed, accuracy, and agility. Find out how the shift is unfolding.
Capgemini Holds Guidance Despite Q1 2025 Revenue Dip as Generative AI Fuels Optimism
Capgemini Holds Guidance Despite Q1 2025 Revenue Dip as Generative AI Fuels Optimism

Why Capgemini’s AI-driven mainframe modernization marks a turning point for legacy enterprises seeking cloud transformation

Capgemini SE is advancing its position in enterprise technology services with the launch of an AI-powered mainframe modernization framework that promises to accelerate the transition from legacy systems to cloud-compatible architectures. The announcement arrives at a moment when organizations in regulated industries are under pressure to improve agility, reduce operational expenditure, and address talent shortages affecting older programming languages such as COBOL. Capgemini SE states that the new offering uses both generative artificial intelligence and agentic artificial intelligence to refactor decades-old mainframe applications into modular, scalable digital environments. The result is positioned as a faster, more precise alternative to traditional transformation techniques that often leave enterprises dependent on legacy infrastructure.

The French consulting and technology group indicates that enterprises have struggled to fully eliminate technical debt from mainframe environments because earlier modernization programs largely relied on rehosting or surface-level encapsulation. These methods often preserved underlying legacy logic, which continued to constrain innovation. According to Capgemini SE, its new platform directly addresses this limitation by enabling a full extraction, translation, and reconstruction of business rules using AI-generated code pipelines. This approach is presented as an opportunity for clients to both reduce costs and align their core systems with cloud-native digital strategies that are now expected across global industries.

How Capgemini’s AI automation pipeline works to transform legacy mainframe estates at scale

The modernization framework centers on automated refactoring that uses generative artificial intelligence assistants to interpret the structure, purpose, and logic of large mainframe codebases. Mainframes in sectors like insurance, banking, and public services often contain millions of lines of COBOL code, frequently undocumented and deeply intertwined with mission-critical operations. Traditional modernization requires lengthy manual analysis and testing. Capgemini SE explains that its new approach deploys autonomous AI agents to examine the code, extract embedded business rules, and reconstruct them into standardized, cloud-ready microservices.

These AI agents execute multi-step processes that include static analysis, code comprehension, dependency mapping, test scenario generation, and automated verification. Capgemini SE reports that this reduces human effort and shortens transformation timelines, while still adhering to the governance and quality standard frameworks expected in high-compliance industries. By embedding AI-supported testing into every step, the company aims to minimize transition risks and reduce the probability of unexpected failures during migration.

This framework is also positioned as integrable with major cloud providers, allowing organizations to choose their preferred cloud environment while maintaining a predictable and standardized modernization pathway. As of May 2025, industry analysts frequently note that enterprises increasingly prefer platforms that combine automation with domain expertise, particularly when transforming large monolithic applications that are tightly bound to legacy databases and proprietary transaction engines.

Why mainframe modernization is accelerating in 2025 as enterprises face cost pressures and talent constraints

The push toward full mainframe modernization has intensified in 2025 due to growing operational costs and a shrinking pool of engineers trained in legacy languages. Large-scale enterprises continue to rely on mainframes for core workloads such as financial processing, policy administration, claims management, inventory management, and mission-critical public systems. Yet maintaining these systems has become increasingly expensive, partly because mainframe hardware usage fees continue to rise and partly because companies are struggling to find specialized talent capable of supporting aging architectures.

Analysts in the United States and Europe have observed that organizations experimenting with partial modernization efforts such as user interface layers, rehosting, or screen scraping often do not achieve the long-term cost savings or agility they anticipate. These methods retain the core dependencies of the legacy application and do not allow complete migration to cloud-native patterns. Capgemini SE’s solution aims to address this gap by enabling a full reconstruction of the application logic, giving enterprises a plausible path to completely exit mainframe environments with minimal operational disruption.

Industry research published during 2024 and early 2025 highlights that enterprises which have successfully refactored legacy applications into microservices typically see stronger application resilience, improved integration with data analytics platforms, and lower long-term operating costs. Capgemini SE appears to be positioning its AI modernization approach to target exactly these outcomes.

What early results reveal about Capgemini’s modernization capability and client execution strength

Capgemini SE notes that early deployments of the new AI-powered modernization framework have been completed for multiple clients, including a large United States-based life insurance provider. Capgemini SE reports that generative artificial intelligence was used to process and translate complex COBOL logic that governed policy rules and benefits calculations. The refactored output was then aligned with a cloud-based Policy Administration System. Capgemini SE indicates that the accelerated timeline and improved accuracy of business rule extraction exceeded what would have been possible using traditional manual refactoring techniques.

Industry analysts following Capgemini SE have often commented on the company’s strength in regulated sectors such as financial services and insurance, where modernization projects require not only technical capability but also deep understanding of compliance, actuarial logic, and risk management. Capgemini SE’s legacy modernization practice is built on decades of experience delivering transformation programs for global insurers and banks, which adds context to its ability to deploy generative artificial intelligence at production scale.

How the new refactoring model could influence CIO and CTO transformation strategies in 2025

The modernization offering is likely to influence enterprise technology strategies because it aligns with broader board-level goals around digital transformation, operational efficiency, and risk reduction. An AI-generated cloud-native architecture enables organizations to redesign their application portfolios in ways that support faster release cycles, better customer experiences, and integration with real-time analytics. For industries dependent on data for pricing, personalization, and fraud detection, such transformations carry strategic importance.

Capgemini SE suggests that transformed systems allow more seamless integration with artificial intelligence and machine learning platforms, which in turn makes enterprise data more accessible and actionable. As organizations move toward predictive and autonomous decision-making models, legacy mainframe structures are increasingly seen as barriers to innovation. Capgemini SE’s offering presents an exit route that aligns technology modernization with corporate strategy rather than treating it as a purely technical exercise.

How Capgemini’s AI-led approach differentiates it from rival modernization providers

Capgemini SE faces competition from global consulting and technology groups such as Accenture plc, International Business Machines Corporation, and Infosys Limited. Each has invested significantly in modernization tools, cloud migration frameworks, and generative artificial intelligence acceleration programs. However, analysts observing the sector have noted that Capgemini SE’s emphasis on fully automated refactoring and direct integration of agentic artificial intelligence distinguishes its offering from others that focus more heavily on replatforming or partial modernization.

Capgemini SE describes its solution as an end-to-end reengineering model that not only migrates but reconstructs mission-critical applications. This contrasts with strategies that seek to preserve legacy binaries or wrap legacy logic in digital interfaces. The promise of a complete mainframe exit positions Capgemini SE differently, particularly for clients with large compliance obligations, expanding data volumes, or multi-decade technical debt.

What market sentiment suggests about Capgemini’s trajectory in AI-driven modernization

Although Capgemini SE is not listed on major United States stock exchanges, European technology analysts have expressed constructive sentiment regarding its AI investments. As of early 2025, enterprises are moving from experimental AI pilots to scaled digital transformation programs, particularly as generative artificial intelligence proves capable of improving software development productivity. Capgemini SE’s combination of consulting, engineering, data science, and system integration capabilities is viewed as a competitive advantage, especially for large firms seeking integrated service delivery.

Broader market research from 2024 and early 2025 shows that modernization, cloud migration, and AI engineering are among the fastest-growing segments in IT services. Many enterprises view AI-led modernization as a way to reduce long-term dependency on specialized talent pools and increase resilience in multi-cloud environments. Capgemini SE’s alignment with these themes positions it favorably relative to market demand.

How Capgemini’s modernization strategy fits within its wider artificial intelligence vision

Capgemini SE has been investing in artificial intelligence across its core service lines, including DevOps, autonomous testing, digital twins, cloud engineering, and customer experience platforms. The introduction of agentic artificial intelligence into modernization workflows indicates a progression toward more autonomous IT environments, where AI agents can perform tasks that previously required large-scale human intervention.

Capgemini SE’s vision for AI-enhanced system transformation is consistent with its wider strategic direction. By embedding artificial intelligence capabilities across its consulting, engineering, and managed services operations, the group aims to accelerate time to value for clients while reducing operational overhead. This cohesive AI strategy reinforces its identity as a full-spectrum transformation partner.

What the next stages of Capgemini’s modernization roadmap may involve across global industries

Based on client demand patterns observed through 2024 and early 2025, Capgemini SE expects modernization needs to intensify in utilities, telecom, manufacturing, and public sector platforms. Government agencies in particular operate some of the world’s oldest mainframe systems, many of which are central to social services, taxation, and public administration. Modernizing these systems requires strict attention to security, continuity, and data governance, areas in which Capgemini SE has established experience.

Capgemini SE is also anticipated to deepen integrations between its AI toolkits and leading cloud ecosystems, specifically Microsoft Azure, Google Cloud, and Amazon Web Services. As these cloud providers expand support for industry-specific data governance and AI workload optimization, Capgemini SE’s modernization clients stand to benefit from smoother post-migration operations.

By focusing on automation, speed, and regulatory awareness, Capgemini SE’s AI-led modernization framework is expected to play a significant role in how enterprises rebuild their technology foundations for the next decade of digital innovation.


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