BTP from Hana to AI to Clean Core

The SAP BTP universe

The name should say it all, but SAP BTP is more of a framework for artificial intelligence, ERP enhancement, data management, security and clean core. Business Technology Platform represents a comprehensive universe in which SAP's ERP will continue to develop in the coming years. The question of technical leadership and hierarchy is completely open: is S/4 with Hana, Clean Core and BTP the ERP paradigm of the future or will SAP BTP position itself as a universal platform for artificial intelligence, Hana and other ERP S versions.

Here to stay? While there may soon be an S/4 successor, many SAP experts think that Hana and BTP are here to stay. The BTP platform is currently in a productive maturing process. SAP manager Raja Gupta explained in a technology blog on community.sap.com how "Hello World" can be programmed in Java and Node.js, Abap RAP, CAP, SAP Build, Node, Python, SAP UI5, Kyma and using the BTP SDK for iOS. An impressive IT achievement, but not yet a consolidated ERP platform for existing SAP customers, as there is no uniform use and license model.

SAP BTP: Technology versus business management

A traditional SAP customer has at least two challenges: the technical operation of the ERP system and the business and organizational orchestration. The added value of an ERP platform results from the increase in productivity in the structural and process organization.

Whether and how SAP BTP pays off for existing SAP customers has not yet been conclusively clarified. However, the necessity of a comprehensive platform for successful ERP further development is beyond doubt. Monolithic ERP constructs such as SAP R/3 and ECC 6.0 are no longer able to cope with an agile and Internet-based economy. The move towards hybrid ERP systems and IT platforms is irreversible. A future SAP ERP universe will need a platform for AI, security and modifications.

The first step: SAP Clean Core

SAP is not only on its way to the cloud, but is also undergoing a comprehensive consolidation process called "Clean Core". The aim is to reincarnate classic ERP as a compatible IT building block. SAP's ERP (both R/3 and ECC 6.0) has been sustainably individualized through numerous modifications. This development is now reaching its limits. Individual solutions are difficult to orchestrate in a hybrid environment consisting of on-prem, private and public cloud. SAP wants to protect S/4 from manipulation with a newly standardized ERP and well-defined APIs. This return to standards and the encapsulation of an S/4 is known at SAP under the code name "Clean Core".

SAP partners can be certified for this demanding program. One of the first partners from the Clean Core program will give a keynote speech at the Steampunk and BTP Summit 2025 on March 5 in Heidelberg to give an insight into his work and his offer - register now.

Artificial intelligence as an SAP ERP function

There is currently an exciting debate in the SAP community about the application and positioning of AI. There are essentially two lines of development: AI as a component of existing ERP algorithms (the path that SAP is currently taking) or AI as a framework on the BTP for free use by existing SAP customers and partners.

ERP and AI are inseparable. The SAP community is currently engaged in a lively debate about how to implement AI functions. The fact is that Business Technology Platform and suitable AI functions can be used to create highly individual, but also release-capable programs. One SAP partner calls it "The SAP Business Technology Platform as the mediation center of AI". The SAP BTP with the Generative AI Hub can be a mediation center for artificial intelligence and thus provide an opportunity to enrich applications with the capabilities of generative AI. A presentation on the topic "The GenAI Hub of SAP BTP" is planned for the Steampunk and BTP Summit 2025 planned in Heidelberg - here. to the program.