SAP unveils new AI tools to boost developer efficiency

SAP has announced the introduction of 'Joule for Developer', a set of new AI co-pilot capabilities designed to enhance SAP Build tools for developers.

The development aims to assist developers in creating applications more efficiently by using purpose-built large language models (LLMs). These improvements are expected to help businesses innovate rapidly, reduce technical debt, and maintain strategic oversight of their developments.

Joule is embedded across SAP Business Suite, which includes SAP Build, providing an integrated development and automation environment for building business applications. According to SAP, more than 17,000 customers globally are utilising SAP Build solutions, indicating a significant uptake of these tools in the market.

Bharat Sandhu, Senior Vice President of AI & Cloud Platform at SAP, explained, "We're thrilled to announce new Joule-powered AI capabilities for SAP Build Process Automation and SAP Build Apps. These enhancements complement the previously announced AI capabilities in SAP Build Code and ABAP Cloud - empowering developers of all skill levels to build more efficiently by leveraging comprehensive, AI-infused developer tools to deliver precise, contextualised outcomes powered by purpose-built, SAP-centric AI models."

Joule is designed to support developers by anticipating needs, offering intelligent suggestions, and automating tasks such as documentation and sample data generation. This assistance extends across various coding environments, including ABAP, Java, and JavaScript.

The key capabilities highlighted include application creation tools to generate code, UI, data models, and sample data. There are also code optimisation features which allow refactoring, unit test creation, and code summarisation. Additionally, Joule offers process and workflow automation using natural language queries.

Joule's integration with purpose-built LLMs enables developers to derive precise results faster. This includes predictive code completion and real-time, context-aware support for code optimisation. Joule also supports automation pipeline creation specific to customer environments and project requirements.

The AI capabilities embedded within SAP Build tools are designed to offer a seamless development environment. They are fully integrated within SAP Build development tools and SAP Business Application Studio, eliminating the need for developers to switch between different software for different tasks.

By offering plugins and features directly within the SAP Build Process Automation project canvas, developers can generate and summarise processes and decisions using natural language commands, providing a more intuitive development workflow.

Bharat Sandhu further stated, "Looking ahead, we have a complete road map of cutting-edge features, including optimising business logic, automating documentation, and enhancing data protection and AI compliance. To enable an agentic journey, developers will be able to develop custom AI agents tailored to their specific needs."

In addition, as more clients switch to SAP S/4HANA Cloud, the company plans to ease the migration process by offering improvements that analyse legacy code, provide explanations, and suggest optimisations, all while adhering to SAP's clean core guidelines.

Bharat Sandhu concluded, "These new features will help empower developers to build more innovative, efficient, and secure workflows and applications. Stay tuned for more AI-driven innovations!"