IBM i Update #38 – Mapepire, Technology Refresh 2 for 7.6 and the release of a new entry-level Power11
Welcome to episode #38 of the IBM i Update, your monthly digest into what’s happening within the IBM i community. In this episode, we’re still in Lyon, but for this second part, we look at a couple of the technical announcements, including Mapepire [pronounced MAH-pup-ee], the second technology refresh for 7.6 and the announcement of […]
IBM i Update #37 – Common Europe Lyon July 2026 Review
Welcome to episode #37 of the IBM i Update, your monthly digest into what’s happening within the IBM i community. This month, Andy Nicholson visits COMMON Europe and catches up with a raft of IBM Champions, discusses the latest technology and enjoys a ‘thank you and farewell’ with retiring Chief Architect and CTO, Steve Will. […]
IBM i AI Modernisation: How watsonx Orchestrate is Bridging the Skills Gap
Artificial Intelligence has dominated technology conversations for several years, with much of the attention focused on cloud platforms, hyperscalers and fast-growing technology companies. For organisations relying on the IBM i platform to run business-critical applications, however, the question has always been different: how can AI be adopted without compromising the stability, security and reliability that […]
IBM i Update: June 2026 – IBM Bob Premium Package for i
Welcome to your IBM i update for June 2026, your monthly digest into what’s happening within the IBM i community. This month we visited the i-Power event in Milton Keynes and amongst the workshops and presentations, we learn more on the BOB premium edition for i and explore what it offers beyond the standard edition… […]
AI for IBM i Development: Our Hands-On Review of IBM Bob
At Proximity, we’re always on the lookout for new technologies that can help our clients modernise, maintain and develop their IBM i applications so they can get even more value out of their IBM i investment. Recently, some of our IBM i development team attended the iPower conference, hosted by i-UG, where they had the […]
IBM i Update: May 2026 – Is IBM i the perfect platform for native agentic AI?
Welcome to your IBM i update for May 2026, your monthly digest into what’s happening within the IBM i community. In this episode of the IBM i update, we ask whether IBM i is the perfect platform for native agentic AI? How MCP will be the bridge between your data and AI automation. Ask when […]
What to expect at i-UG’s i-Power Conference 2026
More than 300 IBM i users will be heading to a new venue for the 2026 version of the i-UG i-Power Conference. After three years in Northampton, the Leonardo Hotel in Milton Keynes will host this year’s event. Andy Nicholson sat down with fellow IBM Champion, Steve Cast last week to discuss the conference. Steve […]
IBM i Update: April 2026 – Is AI on IBM i a productivity breakthrough, or a bubble ready to burst?
Welcome to your IBM i update for April 2026, your monthly digest into what’s happening within the IBM i community. In this episode of the IBM i update, we discuss AI on IBM i and ask if we’re heading for a productivity breakthrough or is this just a bubble that’s about to burst? You can […]
IBM i Update: March 2026 – Is COBOL the asbestos of programming languages?
Welcome to your IBM i update for March 2026, your monthly digest into what’s happening within the IBM i community. In this edition, we’ll look at whether COBOL is the asbestos of programming languages, as described by WIRED, the results of the Fortra IBM i Marketplace Survey 2026 with Mike Davison, a summary of iUG […]
IBM i Update: February 2026 – Fortra Marketplace Survey 2026 results and trends
Welcome to your IBM i update for February 2026, your monthly digest into what’s happening within the IBM i community. In this edition, we’ll look at the 2026 results of the Fortra IBM i Marketplace survey and discuss what they mean and analyse the trends using the previous years’ data. You can watch the video […]