Can AI help solve the COBOL code crisis?
Reported by The Verge, not nibnow. We are not the publisher of this story, only the source is.
The reliance on decades‑old COBOL code in critical institutions like the IRS means failures could disrupt essential services, and AI could offer a way to modernize or maintain these systems safely.
A computer running COBOL 73, an antiquated computer programming language, awaits taxpayer information entries at the Internal Revenue Service in Austin, Tx., on Friday, June 10, 2022. | Image: Getty Images What do the IRS, banks, airlines, and government infrastructure around the world have in common? They're all running on systems propped up by antique computer code that nobody dares touch, lest everything come crashing down. OpenAI thinks it may have a solution. On October 19th, the company to
COBOL is a programming language created in the 1950s that still powers many legacy systems in finance, government and transportation, and updating it is difficult because few programmers are familiar with it.
- •OpenAI’s upcoming announcements or pilots aimed at using AI to analyze or rewrite COBOL code
- •Potential partnerships between AI firms and legacy‑system operators such as the IRS, banks or airlines
- •Industry responses or regulatory guidance on using AI for critical infrastructure code maintenance