Data 21 Launches Connect/AI with Native z/OS Agentic 3270

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

August 18, 2026

[Torrance, CA] — Data 21 today announced its fully native z/OS agentic AI solution for 3270 applications. Unlike approaches that expose 3270 sessions as REST APIs for external AI agents, Connect/AI combined with Connect/3270 runs the agentic reasoning, multi-step automation, and structured data extraction entirely on z/OS — under native SAF security, System SSL, and full auditability.

This architecture keeps sensitive screen data and decision logic inside the mainframe trust boundary, delivering true data sovereignty while enabling natural-language agents to harvest and reason over the results of complex application logic across multiple screens and applications.

• 100% native z/OS agentic runtime — Connect/AI lives on the mainframe, not outside it
• Built-in REST API for structured 3270 screen interaction — no external agent framework required
• Multi-application data extraction — harvest structured results produced by complex legacy logic, then apply on-platform inference
• No data egress required — inference and 3270 interaction remain under SAF control
• Contrasts with solutions that primarily serve external AI agents via REST APIs

“While other solutions enable external AI agents to call 3270 applications, Connect/AI is the agent — running natively on z/OS.”

Running 100% on the mainframe with no client software, no browser plug-ins, and no middleware servers, Connect/3270 is the simplest, most secure, and most architecturally elegant mainframe access solution available today — and, paired with Connect/AI, the foundation for Agentic 3270.

Mainframe Screen Data, Structured for AI: A New Integration Primitive

For decades, the intelligence embedded in mainframe screens has been the exclusive domain of skilled human operators — people who know how to navigate complex 3270 terminal interfaces, interpret the data they present, and take the right action. That institutional knowledge has been impossible to scale, difficult to retain, and entirely unavailable to modern automated systems.

Connect/3270, paired with Connect/AI, changes that at the architectural level.

Rather than treating the 3270 terminal screen as a pixel grid or a stream of characters, Connect/3270 exposes mainframe screen data in structured, AI-ready form — the kind of clean, machine-readable data modern APIs, Connect/AI, and automation frameworks expect. Connect/AI then reads that structured data, reasons about it, and acts on live mainframe data — no knowledge of 3270 protocols or mainframe internals required.

Together, they transform the mainframe terminal from a human-only interface into a first-class data source for the modern AI stack.

From Screen to Intelligence: How Agentic 3270 Works

Connect/3270 captures live mainframe screen state and delivers it in structured, AI-ready form. Paired with Connect/AI, that data reaches LLM inference engines, RPA frameworks, or custom scripts, which interpret the data, apply reasoning, and propose actions back through the terminal session for your approval — creating a fast, AI-assisted feedback loop for mainframe screen data.

The implications are significant:

• Connect/AI agents receive clean, structured screen data rather than raw terminal character streams, making integration with LLMs and automation frameworks straightforward
• Scripts and RPA tools can interrogate mainframe screen state programmatically via Connect/3270, enabling precise, reliable automation of complex workflows
• LLMs powered by Connect/AI can interpret mainframe screen context — understanding not just field values but their meaning — in the same way a seasoned operator does
• Downstream systems — dashboards, alerting platforms, modern applications, decision engines — can be fed real-time mainframe intelligence without custom middleware or data pipelines

This is not screen-scraping. This is mainframe data, structured and delivered in the format the modern world already speaks.

A Fundamentally Different Architecture

Most mainframe terminal access products introduce significant infrastructure complexity — dedicated middleware servers, client-side emulator software, browser plug-ins, and VPN clients that must be deployed, maintained, patched, and licensed across the enterprise.

Connect/3270 eliminates all of it.

Running 100% on the mainframe, Connect/3270 requires no software on the user’s device, no plug-ins in the browser, and no middleware servers in the data center. This approach delivers significant advantages:

• Radical simplicity — nothing to install, configure, or maintain outside the mainframe
• Reduced attack surface — no middleware servers or client software to patch or secure
• Lower total cost of ownership — no additional server infrastructure, licensing, or client deployment overhead
• True mainframe reliability — availability and performance governed entirely by the mainframe, not dependent on external components

Web Browser Access: Modernizing the Human Experience

Connect/3270 delivers a full-featured 3270 terminal session directly inside any modern web browser — from anywhere in the enterprise, on any device, with nothing to install. Existing mainframe applications work without modification, and IT retains full centralized control over session management, authentication, and access governance.

Key benefits for human users include:

• Zero-install, zero-plugin access from any device with a modern browser
• Full 3270 protocol fidelity — no mainframe application changes required
• Centralized session management for IT governance and compliance
• Elimination of client software lifecycle — no deployments, updates, or compatibility issues to manage

Agentic 3270: The Intelligent Mainframe Operator, Unlocked by Connect/AI

Paired with Connect/AI, Connect/3270 places it alongside your mainframe operators — scaling instantly and bringing the full inferential power of modern AI to bear on live mainframe data delivered in AI-ready form, with every action gated by human approval.

Enterprises can now:

• Automate complex, judgment-intensive mainframe tasks that rule-based automation has never been able to handle
• Deploy Connect/AI-powered agents that receive structured mainframe screen data from Connect/3270 and respond with contextual intelligence
• Integrate mainframe workflows into modern orchestration platforms, agentic frameworks, and AI pipelines
• Preserve and scale institutional knowledge that today resides only in the minds of experienced operators
• Drive real-time decisions from mainframe data without building custom integration layers or migrating data off-platform

“Mainframes hold some of the most valuable operational data in existence, but that data has always been locked behind an interface only skilled humans could interpret,” said David Kennedy, CEO, Data 21. “Connect/3270 turns mainframe screen data into structured, AI-ready output. Paired with Connect/AI, that same connection becomes a real-time source for the scripts and automation frameworks enterprises already run. Together, they let organizations point AI at the mainframe and put decades of operational intelligence to work.”

Enterprise-Grade Security: SAF and System SSL

Security is not an afterthought in Connect/3270 — it is foundational, built on the same battle-tested technologies that have protected the world’s most sensitive enterprise data for decades.

SAF (System Authorization Facility), IBM’s industry-standard mainframe security interface, governs all access to Connect/3270 sessions. Every user — whether a human operator accessing via browser or a Connect/AI agent consuming structured screen data — is authenticated and authorized through SAF, ensuring that mainframe security policies, roles, and access controls are uniformly enforced across every interaction. Enterprises that have invested in SAF-based security infrastructure will find that Connect/3270 extends and respects that investment without compromise.

IBM System SSL provides end-to-end encryption for all Connect/3270 communications. Every session — browser-based or agent-driven — is protected in transit using the same cryptographic infrastructure that secures mainframe-based financial transactions, healthcare records, and government systems worldwide.

Together, SAF and System SSL mean that Connect/3270 inherits the mainframe’s legendary security posture by design — not by bolting on third-party security layers over an inherently weaker architecture. For enterprises in regulated industries such as financial services, healthcare, insurance, and government, this is the security story they need to hear.

Key security capabilities include:

• SAF-enforced authentication and authorization for all human and Connect/AI sessions
• System SSL encryption for all data in transit — browser sessions and Connect/AI data feeds alike
• No external security dependencies — no third-party identity providers, middleware security layers, or external certificate authorities required
• Comprehensive session logging and auditability to support regulatory compliance and forensic review
• Uniform policy enforcement — the same SAF rules that govern human users apply equally to Connect/AI and automated scripts

Availability

Connect/3270 and Connect/AI are available now through Data 21 and its authorized channel partners, individually or as the paired Agentic 3270 offering. Enterprise licensing, proof-of-concept programs, and technical evaluations are available upon request.

For more information, visit the Connect/3270 product page, the Connect/AI product page, or contact Data 21 at salesteam@data21.com | (310) 870-7221.

About Data21

Data 21 is a leading provider of mainframe connectivity and access solutions, helping enterprises maximize the value of their IBM mainframe investments. With deep expertise in mainframe integration, Data 21 delivers modern, secure, and scalable solutions for organizations that depend on mainframe systems to run their most critical operations.

Media Contact:
Pamela Vigil
Director of Sales and Marketing
salesteam@data21.com
(310) 870-7221