In 2021, I had the privilege of being part of one of the boldest decisions in our company's history to date.
IBM Z has long been home to an operating system that customers trusted, valued, and simply wanted to continue using. When 21CS made the decision to acquire and invest in VSE, it was more than a business decision. It was a commitment.
It was a bold move. We became the first company outside of IBM to own, support, maintain, and continue the evolution of an IBM Z operating system. With that came responsibility. We accepted the obligation of supporting an operating system that organizations depend on every day while ensuring it would continue to evolve for the next generation of users.
Our mission was never to simply maintain VSE. It was to strengthen it, modernize it, and give customers confidence that the platform had a vibrant future. We needed to rebuild confidence, work alongside partners who questioned whether the platform would continue to evolve and demonstrate to customers that our commitment was real. We promised we would invest, innovate, and deliver on that promise.
Five years later, I believe we have.
Since 2021, we have delivered two major releases, introduced an AI assistant, added VS Code integration, and continued to modernize the VSE experience. More importantly, we have demonstrated that VSE is an active, evolving operating system with a future.
If you are still running z/VSE 6.2 or earlier, you are no longer on a supported release. Now is the time to move forward.
With VSEn 6.4 running on IBM's newest IBM z17 Single Frame and Rack Mount systems, organizations can take advantage of the latest IBM Z innovations while continuing to rely on the operating system they know and trust. VSEn embraces modern development practices, integrates with today's tooling, and continues to evolve alongside the IBM Z platform.
None of this happens without great people. While this has been a true team effort, I would be remiss if I did not recognize Gonzalo Muelas Serrano, whose leadership, vision, and unwavering commitment have guided VSEn through this journey. His passion for the platform, our customers, and the future of VSEn has been instrumental in bringing us to where we are today.
I also want to recognize our CEO, Eduardo Ciliendo, whose vision for 21CS is built on making bold investments, embracing innovation, and creating the future rather than waiting for it. The VSEn journey is one example of that vision in action, and I have no doubt it will be followed by many more.
To Gonzalo, Eduardo, our engineering team, our support team, our partners, and most importantly our customers, thank you for believing in what we set out to accomplish. Together, we have demonstrated that VSEn has a strong future, and I believe the future of 21CS is even brighter.
We're just getting started.
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