AI-Driven Application Modernization: Industry-Specific Success Stories

Modernizing legacy applications is no longer a technical afterthought—it’s a strategic imperative for organizations across every sector. Outdated systems, often built on mainframes or aging codebases, can stifle innovation, inflate costs, and slow time-to-market. Yet, the path to modernization is rarely straightforward. Each industry faces unique regulatory, operational, and customer experience hurdles. At Publicis Sapient, we address these challenges head-on with Sapient Slingshot, our proprietary AI-powered platform that accelerates legacy modernization, reduces technical debt, and delivers measurable business outcomes.

Legacy systems—especially those built on COBOL or mainframe technologies—are notoriously complex and tightly coupled. Traditional modernization efforts can drag on for years, consuming resources and introducing risk. Sapient Slingshot leverages advanced AI to automate and streamline every phase of the modernization journey—from code analysis and migration to testing and deployment—enabling organizations to:

• Achieve up to 3x faster migration speeds
• Reduce modernization costs by over 50%
• Cut defects by half while improving code quality and maintainability
• Accelerate time-to-market and free up teams for innovation

Below, we showcase how Publicis Sapient’s AI-powered approach delivers industry-specific success in financial services, retail, and healthcare.

Unique Challenges: Financial institutions must modernize legacy platforms to meet evolving customer expectations, regulatory requirements, and the need for robust security. Migrating from mainframe systems (e.g., COBOL) to modern architectures is often hampered by the complexity of legacy code and the criticality of compliance.

Tailored Solution: Sapient Slingshot’s AI framework analyzes and deconstructs millions of lines of legacy code, translating program logic into clear, tech-neutral specifications. These are reviewed and enhanced by product owners, then converted into modular, production-ready code. The platform generates comprehensive documentation, architecture diagrams, and automated test cases, ensuring traceability and regulatory alignment.

Business Impact:

• A leading benefits provider achieved 3x faster migration and significantly reduced effort through AI-driven automation.
• Functional specifications improved traceability and code quality, making the new system easier to maintain and enhance.
• Automated security and compliance checks ensured the new platform met stringent industry standards.

Concrete Example: For a commercial bank, Sapient Slingshot enabled the rapid development of a secure mobile onboarding app. The platform generated epics, stories, and acceptance criteria aligned with industry best practices, produced interactive wireframes, and wrote clean, secure code ready for integration—all in a fraction of the traditional timeline. In another case, a bank in the MENA region onboarded 45,000 SMEs in the first year, reducing onboarding time to under 45 minutes.

Unique Challenges: Retailers must modernize their MarTech and commerce platforms to deliver seamless, personalized customer experiences across channels. Legacy systems and manual processes often lead to delays, overspending, and inconsistent customer journeys.

Tailored Solution: Sapient Slingshot automates the migration and setup of marketing technology platforms, such as Adobe Experience Manager (AEM). The platform analyzes existing code, applies AI-driven refactoring, and generates new, cloud-ready components. It can even convert Figma designs or image files directly into reusable web components, drastically reducing manual effort.

Business Impact:

• Retailers have migrated MarTech platforms to the cloud in up to half the time, with no compromise on quality or security.
• Automated documentation and testing ensure smooth, accurate migrations and faster releases.
• Teams can focus on innovation and customer engagement, rather than routine maintenance.

Concrete Example: A global restaurant chain leveraged AI/ML and analytics to automate campaign segmentation and testing, resulting in 5x faster testing, 50% fewer resources required, and a 75% reduction in reporting time. This enabled highly personalized marketing and measurable increases in guest engagement and revenue.

Unique Challenges: Healthcare organizations face mounting pressure to modernize legacy applications for greater agility, cost efficiency, and regulatory compliance. The complexity of healthcare data and the need for secure, reliable systems make modernization especially daunting.

Tailored Solution: Sapient Slingshot supports cloud developers in deconstructing legacy healthcare programs using private AI models. The platform generates functional specifications, architecture diagrams, and automated test scripts, all tailored to the unique requirements of healthcare applications.

Business Impact:

• Healthcare providers have achieved 3x faster migration speeds and reduced modernization costs by over 50%.
• AI-generated documentation and test coverage have improved code quality and maintainability.
• Modernized systems are easier to enhance, supporting ongoing innovation and compliance.

Concrete Example: A global pharmaceutical company automated the creation and localization of marketing and medical content using generative AI, resulting in up to 45% reduction in content creation costs, accelerated time to market, and projected annual savings exceeding $100 million.

Sapient Slingshot is more than a tool—it’s a comprehensive platform built on decades of industry expertise and advanced AI. Key features include:

• Extensive Code Library: Over 20 years of domain knowledge, reusable models, and accelerators
• Proprietary AI Agents: Automate complex processes across the software development lifecycle
• End-to-End Engineering: From code generation and logic simplification to automated testing and documentation
• Seamless Integration: Works with leading project management and cloud platforms, ensuring security and privacy

Measurable Results:

• 50–70% increase in migration speed
• Over 50% reduction in modernization costs
• 50% fewer defects and expanded test coverage
• Up to 99% code-to-spec accuracy

Publicis Sapient’s proven approach to AI-driven application modernization empowers organizations to overcome industry-specific challenges and realize tangible business value. Whether you’re in financial services, retail, healthcare, or another sector, Sapient Slingshot accelerates your journey to modern, agile, and future-ready systems.

Ready to see how Sapient Slingshot can transform your business? Request a live demo and start your modernization journey today.

Relevant Links

• Maximizing ROI Through AI-Powered Application Modernization: A CFO’s Strategic Guide
• AI-Driven Modernization in Financial Services: Overcoming Industry-Specific Tech Debt
• L’IA et la Modernisation des Applications : Un Impératif Stratégique pour les Dirigeants Européens (Europe)
• Maximizing ROI Through AI-Powered Application Modernization: A CFO’s Strategic Guide
• L’IA et la Modernisation des Applications : Un Impératif Stratégique pour les Dirigeants Européens (Europe)
• AI-Driven Modernization in Financial Services: Overcoming Industry-Specific Tech Debt
• Modernización impulsada por IA en servicios financieros latinoamericanos: Superando la deuda tecnológica y acelerando la transformación (LATAM)
• Modernización de Aplicaciones y el ROI en América Latina: Una Perspectiva para Ejecutivos de Negocios (LATAM)
• Modernización impulsada por IA en servicios financieros: Superando la deuda tecnológica y acelerando la transformación en México (LATAM)
• From Tech Debt to Transformation: How AI-Driven Industry Cloud Accelerates Modernization