WALLDORF, Germany and TOKYO, May 16, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- SAP SE (NYSE: SAP) today announced NEC Corporation (TSE: 6701 "NEC") has selected SAP S/4HANA Cloud through the RISE with SAP solution, running on Amazon Web Services (AWS). Together with implementation partner ABeam Consulting, the migration will leverage NEC's generative AI technology and SAP's natural language, generative AI Joule copilot.

NEC, a Japan-based multinational leader in the integration of IT and network technologies, was seeking to optimize costs and streamline data systems to increase integration across its lines of business. As part of advancing its digital transformation, NEC will migrate from on-premise SAP S/4HANA software to SAP S/4HANA Cloud and adopt a clean-core approach, which emphasizes standard offerings and extends them while also reducing future upgrade and operational costs.

NEC is currently operating a large-scale system that includes 1,200 add-ons and more than 200 external interfaces. To migrate to the cloud, NEC will use generative AI to facilitate a clean-core transformation, streamline migration costs and improve operational efficiency. NEC's generative AI and SAP's Joule copilot for natural language processing will automate critical processes such as add-on analysis, report interpretation, code generation from specifications and test automation. Joule is SAP's generative AI assistant that understands the user's unique role and acts as a work copilot across SAP applications to streamline tasks. NEC will be among the first companies to leverage AI tools from SAP to streamline its migrations.

"NEC sees itself as the first customer of its own innovations, applying cutting-edge technologies internally and sharing the gained insights and know-how with customers and society," NEC President and CEO Takayuki Morita said. "This milestone implementation with SAP creates a new industry blueprint for other businesses looking to migrate to the cloud, underscoring NEC's commitment to leading by example in technological adoption and societal contributions."

By migrating to SAP S/4HANA Cloud, NEC anticipates more-efficient system operations by tapping into AI to support version upgrades and reduce future operation-related costs while being able to quickly respond to market changes. By leveraging innovative technologies including AI, NEC aims to digitally drive societal and industry transformations. This migration to the cloud is a key part of NEC's 2025 mid-term management plan focusing on internal, customer and societal digital transformations.