Large language models capable of writing and refactoring computer code have proliferated over the past year. These tools don't really replace programmers -- writing code is as much art as science. But they can make programmers dramatically more efficient by handling tedious tasks.

International Business Machines (NYSE: IBM) has been rolling out its watsonx artificial intelligence (AI) platform over the past few months. The company is focused on helping its enterprise customers train and deploy generative AI models while keeping data privacy and regulatory requirements in mind. On Thursday, IBM officially launched watsonx Code Assistant. This new generative AI-powered assistant is not a general-purpose tool. Instead, it's tailored for very specific use cases.

One of those use cases is converting decades-old code that runs on IBM's mainframe systems to a more modern programming language. This may seem like a boring application of such a transformative technology, but it represents an enormous opportunity for IBM to keep its mainframe systems relevant and generate additional revenue from its enterprise customer base.

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Source Fool.com