AWS re:Invent 2025 - AI driven application modernization at scale (MAM103)

AI-Driven Application Modernization at Scale

Legacy Application Modernization: The Untapped Opportunity

• 85% of workloads have not yet moved to the cloud, according to AWS statistics
• These legacy applications are complex, with millions of lines of code, making them difficult to understand and modernize
• Past modernization efforts have been highly manual and labor-intensive, with significant risks involved

AI's Role in Accelerating Legacy Transformation

• AI is driving a 50% compression in the overall IT lifecycle, according to a McKinsey study
• The biggest impact is in the "design and discovery" phase, where AI can help:
  • Understand requirements
  • Reverse-engineer and analyze legacy applications
  • Develop forward engineering plans and test cases
  • Redefine business processes for digital transformation

Pega's Approach: Retiring Legacy, Embracing No-Code, and Automating Workflows

1. Retiring Legacy Applications: Pega focuses on rewriting legacy applications to move from old architectures to new cloud-native architectures.
2. Transitioning to No-Code Platforms: Pega believes moving from programming languages to no-code platforms is crucial to enable rapid business process changes and avoid technical debt.
3. Automating Analog Processes: Pega is driving the transition from analog, point-to-point integrations to AI-driven, agent-based automation across workflows.

Pega Blueprint: Accelerating the Modernization Journey

• Pega's "Blueprint" technology leverages AI to:
  • Analyze legacy applications, including video walkthroughs and documentation
  • Extract business processes, data models, and user requirements
  • Generate a comprehensive modernization plan and cloud-native application template
• The Blueprint process can be completed in a matter of hours or days, compared to the months or years required for traditional modernization efforts.
• The generated application template can then be deployed to the cloud (AWS, GCP, or on-premises) in around 5 minutes.

Predictable AI Agents for Seamless Experiences

• Pega's platform automatically wraps business processes with conversational AI agents that can serve as a "concierge" to guide users through pre-defined workflows.
• These AI agents provide predictable and controlled interactions, ensuring confidence in deploying AI at scale.
• The interactions with the AI agents are tracked as cases, just like any other workflow execution, providing a unified view of the process.

Mainframe to Cloud: Integrating with AWS Transform

• Pega has integrated its Blueprint technology with AWS Transform, allowing organizations to automatically translate mainframe application analysis into a cloud-native application template.
• This integration can reduce the time to move from mainframe to cloud-native from months or years to just 2 weeks, leveraging the power of AI.

Key Takeaways

• AI is a game-changer in accelerating legacy application modernization, driving 50% compression in the IT lifecycle.
• Pega's approach focuses on retiring legacy applications, embracing no-code platforms, and automating analog processes using AI-driven workflows.
• The Pega Blueprint technology can rapidly analyze legacy applications, extract requirements, and generate cloud-native application templates in a matter of days.
• Pega's predictable AI agents provide a seamless, conversational user experience while maintaining control and visibility over the modernization process.
• The integration with AWS Transform enables a fast and efficient path from mainframe to cloud-native applications, leveraging the power of AI.