A modern environment for your IBM i systems. With or without AI.

Discover

/ Introduction

  1. Modern technologies have changed developer expectations.

  2. IBM i runs the core of the enterprise through its reliability.

  3. Between the two, a shared experience is missing.

You keep your software architectures.

We modernize the experience of your IBM i teams.

With or without AI.

Carbon400 in Visual Studio Code

VS Code Carbon/400
ORDERS.RPGLE
01**free
02ctl-opt dftactgrp(*no) actgrp(*caller);
03dcl-s customerId char(10) inz('C400012');
04dcl-s orderStatus varchar(24);
05dcl-s orderTotal packed(11:2);
06dcl-ds OrderRow qualified;
07  id int(10);
08  status varchar(24);
09  total packed(11:2);
10end-ds;
11exec sql set option commit = *none;
12exec sql
13  select status, total
14    into :orderStatus, :orderTotal
15    from orders
16   where customer = :customerId
17   fetch first 1 row only;
18if sqlcode = 0;
19  dsply ('Order ' + orderStatus);
20else;
21  dsply ('Customer not found');
22endif;
23exec sql
24  declare c1 cursor for
25    select id, status, total
26      from orders
27     where customer = :customerId
28     order by created_at desc;
29exec sql open c1;
30dow sqlcode = 0;
31  exec sql fetch next from c1 into :OrderRow;
32  if sqlcode <> 0;
33    leave;
34  endif;
35  monitor;
36    callp publishOrder(OrderRow);
37  on-error;
38    dsply ('Publish failed');
39  endmon;
40enddo;
41exec sql close c1;
42*inlr = *on;
43return;
TN5250 / 24 x 80
MAIN IBM i Main Menu System: PROD400
Select one of the following:
1.User tasks 2.Office tasks 3.General system tasks 4.Files, libraries, and folders 5.Programming 6.Communications 7.Define or change the system 8.Problem handling 9.Display a menu 10.Information Assistant options 11.IBM i Access tasks 90.Sign off
Selection or command
===> GO CARBON400
F3=Exit F4=Prompt F9=Retrieve F12=Cancel F13=Information Assistant
F23=Set initial menu
MA 20/059
× 0 △ 0 main IBM i: PROD400 CCSID 37
RPGLE UTF-8 Spaces: 2

/ Environment

Several roles, one environment.

A shared native Rust core behind the whole experience.

Direct and lightweight, it talks to your IBM i infrastructure without an intermediary.

Developers use it in their IDE, while the rest of your teams use a standalone app, available as desktop or self-hosted web.

Cross-platform compatible (Windows, Linux, macOS), with one-click workstation installation.

  1. 01

    5250 Emulator

    Native 5250Multi-sessionTLS/mTLSEBCDIC/CCSIDACS/HOD import Preview Details Collapse

    A native 5250 protocol, encrypted with TLS 1.2/1.3, with optional mTLS (PKCS#11/#12).

    Open as many sessions as needed, side by side or detached from the IDE; themes, shortcuts, hotspots and colorblind mode are configured per profile.

    Import HOD from ACS and switch from one IBM i to another in one click.

  2. 02

    IFS/QSYS Explorer

    IFS filesQSYS objectsSource membersSSH/SFTP Preview Details Collapse

    All of IBM i in one tree: IFS, QSYS objects and source members.

    Edit, compare, search inside content, manage objects and members, with native SSH/SFTP.

  3. 03

    DDS Studio

    Drag & dropLive previewOutlineDDS validation Preview Details Collapse

    Create and edit your 5250 screens with drag and drop: attributes and indicators in a panel, DDS code generated and updated in real time, live preview on every change.

    The pre-compile checker reports DDS collisions and errors before anything is sent to IBM i, inline in code and on the preview.

    From the outline, select a format or field to highlight it on both sides, even when hidden by an indicator (ghost preview).

    SDA is removed from IBM i 7.6: screen design continues here, and has never been simpler.

  4. 04

    Db2 for i Client

    Native RustTLSSQL autocompleteSchema BrowserVisual Explain Preview Details Collapse

    A native Db2 client, connected directly to the IBM i Host Server. Nothing to install on the system side, TLS support, configurable port.

    Run queries from the editor or the Db2 panel: autocomplete, scripts, parameterized queries.

    Results grid: sort, filters, CSV/JSON/INSERT export, content previews (XML, JSON, PDF...), comparison.

    Schema Browser, DDL and INSERT generation, QSYS2 system queries and Visual Explain.

  5. 05

    IBM i Languages

    Syntax highlightingAdvanced outlineIntelliSense Preview Details Collapse

    All your IBM i languages in one editor (RPG, CL, DDS, COBOL...).

    Syntax highlighting across all languages, with an Okabe-Ito colorblind-friendly palette.

    IntelliSense for RPGLE, CL, DDS and SQL: contextual completion, snippets and documentation.

    A complete, detailed source outline: the full structure of a member (procedures, subroutines, fields...), plus a keyboard shortcut to jump to any symbol.

Join the ecosystem.

Two paths depending on your context: try the beta or frame a guided pilot with the Carbon/400 team.

You want to try it.

Public beta. Terminal and DSPF available immediately. Db2 and MCP on request. No commitment, no sales call.

Join the beta

You are equipping an IBM i team.

A 30-day pilot with a Carbon/400 engineer: 5 to 10 developers, test LPAR, written summary.

Schedule a pilot
/ AI & MCP

“We do not just give AI context: we give it a real, visible, controlled IBM i environment.”

/ AI & MCP

One shared environment for humans and AI

Carbon/400 gives AI structured access to a real IBM i environment: visible 5250 screen, system feedback and authorized actions.

The assistant observes, acts inside the defined scope and leaves a verifiable trace.

  • Preview

    Automated scenarios

    Describe an IBM i procedure as a replayable YAML scenario that AI or the CLI can validate and run.

  • Preview

    Live IBM i control

    AI can act on a real IBM i environment according to granted rights, with controlled execution.

  • Preview

    Visible 5250 control

    AI can control an open 5250 session, read the screen, send commands and interact with the terminal.

  • Preview

    DB2 / CL / IFS / QSYS control

    Depending on the configured profile, AI can query DB2, run CL, read/write in the IFS or manipulate QSYS members.

  • Preview

    docs/read/mutate security modes

    Precisely limit what AI can do: documentation only, observation, or mutating actions.

  • Preview

    propose/approval/autonomous AI autonomy

    Choose whether AI only proposes, asks for validation before acting, or runs automatically inside the authorized scope.

  • Preview

    Scenario validation and planning

    Check a scenario before execution: required rights, planned steps, resolved values and potential risks.

  • Preview

    Scenario replay

    Replay a validated procedure from the CLI or MCP, with reproducible behavior.

  • Preview

    AI-generated scenarios

    Ask AI to turn a business or technical intent into a scenario ready to validate and run.

  • Preview

    Script-generated scenarios

    Generate or maintain scenarios from your internal tools, scripts or existing pipelines.

  • Preview

    AI action governance

    Frame AI actions with rights, autonomy policies and explicit boundaries.

  • Preview

    Human-approved execution

    Keep a human in the loop to validate sensitive actions before execution.

  • Preview

    Reusable CLI contract outside AI

    Use the same capabilities from MCP, the command line, your scripts or future integrations.

  • Preview

    User-controlled visible session

    The user keeps direct visibility over the 5250 session that AI observes or controls.

  • Coming soon

    Manual 5250 recording to scenario

    Record a manual 5250 navigation and convert it into an automatable scenario.

  • Coming soon

    Scenario monitoring

    Track scenario execution, status, progress and results over time.

  • Coming soon

    Advanced scenario audit

    Produce detailed reports with steps, rights, screenshots, decisions and execution traces.

  • Coming soon

    Integrated IBM i documentation

    Give AI direct access to RPG, DDS, CL and IBM i documentation for contextual answers and generation.

  • Coming soon

    MCP installation assistant

    Configure MCP through a simple or expert flow, with settings generated for your use case.

  • Coming soon

    Standalone Docker worker

    Run scenarios in an isolated standalone worker suited to server or CI/CD use cases.

  • Coming soon

    Assisted compilation

    Launch, analyze and fix IBM i compilations with AI assistance.

  • Coming soon

    Assisted deployment

    Automate transfer, preparation and deployment of IBM i objects in a controlled frame.

  • Coming soon

    IBM i AI debugger

    Help AI drive IBM i debug sessions, analyze runtime state and propose fixes.

  • Coming soon

    Automated IBM i E2E tests

    Automate complete IBM i flows, from terminal or DB2 action to result verification.

  • Coming soon

    Execution scopes and limits

    Restrict actions to profiles, libraries, targets or scopes defined by the organization.

/ AI & MCP

Granular isolation scoped for AI

MCP configuration exposes granular rights: documentation, observation, mutation, visible session, profiles, libraries, autonomy and execution strategy. Each level opens precise tools to the model, without turning IBM i access into a global or implicit permission.

  1. Documentation

    Documentation and reasoning, with no access to your code or infrastructure.

    Understand before acting: AI explains, documents and prepares scenarios without touching the system.

  2. Observation

    Read-only access to your systems to guide diagnosis in a precise context.

    See without changing: AI reads profiles, connections and the 5250 screen to guide diagnosis.

  3. Mutation

    Authorized actions inside a controlled scope, with execution, verification and audit.

    Act under control: AI navigates, executes and verifies every action in a traceable frame.

Configured privileges, preserved approval

MCP can be configured with privileges usable by AI, but that configuration remains a user decision. Even when an assistant helps generate the configuration, adding or changing an MCP server still goes through client and user approval. The LLM cannot modify its own rights alone to create privilege escalation.

About.

We are a small team with a strong product culture, shaped by varied projects across a wide range of technologies.

After working in the IBM i ecosystem, we chose to put our modern development experience to work for this historic architecture: enrich the environment without distorting it, and give IBM i teams tools that are more direct, more readable and more pleasant to use.

Ben & Theo Carbon/400