IBM Promises ‘Something Big’ at Special April 8 Z Day Event

The successor to the z16 will be central to a special IBM Z Day virtual event, which will feature more than 150 speakers

After spending the last several weeks proclaiming that “Something big is coming,” IBM is set to unveil the new mainframe during a special IBM Z Day virtual event set for April 8. The successor to z16 will include up to eight on-chip AI processors per core, which IBM says will enable significant improvements in data processing and model inferencing, helping enterprise IT operations deploy AI at scale.

New Chips for AI

Central to the zNext rollout are two new chips. Announced last year at Hot Chips, the Telum II and Spyre processors were designed to augment AI processing on the mainframe by combining their respective strengths—Telum II specializes in predictive (traditional) AI, while Spyre focuses on generative AI (GenAI). Combined, the chips will help provide more accurate results, especially for tasks like fraud detection, according to IBM.

Speaking at the SHARE conference in Washington, D.C., in February, Meredith Stowell, VP of IBM Z Ecosystem, further explained the new chips’ utility. “It’s these new technologies that are really going to enable, from a design perspective, the ability to increase the overall processing power and processing capacity on our next-generation mainframe systems,” Stowell said.

While the original Telum chip brought AI processing to the mainframe with the introduction of the z16, Spyre will furnish the mainframe with LLM-optimized processing for the first time, Christian Jacobi, IBM Fellow and CTO of IBM Systems Development, told TechChannel last year.

Speakers and Learning Paths

A look at the new mainframe and its AI integration will be among several topics covered by 150-plus speakers during the seven-hour IBM Z Day event. Other topics to be highlighted range from hybrid cloud to quantum-safe security. 

IBM executives slated to speak include:

• Ross Mauri, general manager, IBM Z and Linux One
• Meredith Stowell, VP, IBM Z Ecosystem
• Tina Tarquinio, VP, Product Management, IBM Z and Linux One
• Skyla Loomis, general manager, IBM Z Software

Z Day will be organized into three learning paths: 

• Security – Focusing on advanced encryption for data protection
• New to Z – For early-tenure mainframers
• Developer – Technical sessions for developers

Those looking to memorialize their Z Day learnings will have the opportunity to earn the following digital skills badges:

• SE AI and Data
• SE Security
• Foundations, Level 1
• Foundations, Level 2

Z Day will run from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. ET. Register here.

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