Planning

Planning for Power 12: What IBM i Shops Should Do Now

There is nothing to buy or quote for Power 12 yet. Here is what IBM i and AS/400 shops can still usefully do today to be ready whenever it arrives.

There is no Power12 quote checklist, because there is no Power12 product to quote. What follows instead is what an IBM i or AS/400 shop can actually do today, grounded in real, currently-known facts -- not speculation dressed up as advice.

1. Know your Power11 support window

IBM's tracked pattern is seven years of standard support followed by three years of extended support per Power generation. If you're currently on Power11 or planning a Power11 purchase, that gives you a concrete internal deadline to plan a next-generation evaluation around, independent of when Power12 actually ships.

2. Watch the IBM i 8.1 release, not just the Power12 announcement

IBM i 8.1 ("IBM i Next") is independently projected for 2028 -- roughly the same window analysts project for Power12. A major IBM i release is historically the point where new Power hardware capabilities actually become usable in production, so it is arguably a more useful planning marker than the hardware announcement alone.

3. Budget for ISA continuity, not a rewrite

Every Power generation to date has preserved software compatibility for existing IBM i and AIX workloads. There is no sourced signal suggesting Power12 breaks that pattern. Capacity and hardware refresh planning is the realistic budget conversation; an application rewrite is not something current evidence suggests you need to plan for.

4. Ask your hardware partner these questions now

Support runwayWhat is my confirmed standard + extended support window on my current or planned Power11 hardware?
Refresh cadenceWhat lead time does my vendor typically need between a new Power generation's announcement and delivered, configured hardware?
AI acceleration pathIf I adopt Spyre-based AI acceleration on Power11 now, what does my vendor know about upgrade or trade-in paths to a future generation?
HMC and management stackIs my current HMC and management tooling version likely to carry forward, based on IBM's past generation-to-generation management requirements?

For Power11-specific specs, pricing status, and sourcing vendors -- the things you can actually buy and quote today -- see power11.as400system.com, this site's sibling covering the shipping generation.