Articles

Claris FileMaker and the power of AI: transforming data interaction

Claris FileMaker is redefining how businesses interact with data by integrating powerful, accessible AI tools that enhance search, accelerate development, and unlock smarter decision-making.

Cathy

22 May 2025 • 3 min

Artificial intelligence is no longer a distant frontier for developers—it’s already reshaping how we work with data.

Claris FileMaker has fully embraced AI, fundamentally enhancing search capabilities and streamlining workflows.
This powerful synergy unlocks new dimensions in data management, empowering users to significantly augment their solutions and boost productivity.

Understanding data through meaning, not just keywords

Traditional search often relies on literal matches. If you don’t enter the right keywords, you might not get the results you need.

FileMaker takes a different approach that transcends traditional keyword-based queries and enables searches based on meaning, context, and intent—not just literal terms.

Natural language

AI Search enables users to search data and pose questions using natural, everyday language rather than constructing complex database queries.

This fundamental change democratizes data access, empowering every team member to extract valuable insights from FileMaker systems without needing specialized technical expertise in database structures, field names, or complex query logic.

Context and intent

FileMaker doesn’t just scan for keywords—it interprets what users mean. By understanding the meaning and context of natural language questions, semantic search allows users to pinpoint relevant data and images with unprecedented accuracy within their FileMaker applications.

Imagine asking your application, “Find all customer complaints related to product defects from the last quarter,” and instantly receiving a comprehensive, prioritized list, regardless of the precise wording used in the original feedback.

This contextual understanding also seamlessly benefits visual asset management, allowing users to find similar images or identify duplicates effortlessly, without laborious manual tagging.

Accelerating workflow development

AI in Claris FileMaker goes far beyond enhancing search, it actively accelerates the development process itself. Whether you’re a seasoned developer or a citizen developer building your first app, AI acts as a powerful co-pilot throughout the creation and optimization of your solutions.

By automating repetitive and time-consuming tasks, like writing scripts, generating code snippets, or performing routine operations, AI features in FileMaker free developers to focus on what matters most: building solutions that deliver real value to users.

This doesn’t replace human creativity or judgment, it amplifies it.

“We don’t build robots to replace people. We create Iron Man suits – to empower people and give them superpowers.”
Cris Ippolite, founder and CEO, iSolutions

With AI assisting in the background, development becomes less about execution and more about innovation.

Key benefits of AI integration in Claris FileMaker

Integrating AI into Claris FileMaker doesn’t just enhance applications—it transforms how organizations work with data, streamline operations, and make decisions.

Faster data retrieval

AI significantly cuts down the time spent on manually filtering or querying databases. This makes data access more intuitive and accessible for everyone across your organization, not just technical users.

Predictive insights

By leveraging historical data, AI empowers FileMaker solutions to forecast future trends and outcomes, whether it’s predicting sales performance, optimizing stock levels, or anticipating equipment maintenance, leading to significant cost efficiencies and improved operational agility.

Workflow optimization

AI takes over repetitive and time-consuming tasks such as data entry, scheduling, and reports. This not only reduces the risk of human error but also frees up teams to focus on high-impact, strategic work that drives innovation and growth.

Enriched decision-making

With AI-powered insights and predictive foresight, businesses can make more informed and proactive decisions, grounded in real-time data and anticipated trends, and stay ahead of the curve.

Unlocking AI’s full potential in FileMaker 2025

Looking ahead to FileMaker 2025, Claris is doubling down on its commitment to making AI not just powerful, but practical and reliable within your applications.

• A key upcoming AI feature in FileMaker 2025 is a new script step designed to significantly simplify the integration of large language models (LLMs) into applications.
• This release will also expand support for additional models, including Cohere and Anthropic.
• An AI tab in FileMaker Server will help you manage and make the most of all the AI tools.
• You’ll also be able to manage embeddings, fine-tune models with your own data, and even train models to understand and speak your business language
• An integrated RAG (Retrieval-Augmented Generation) server will help you enhance AI responses with real-time, context-aware accuracy.

And this is just the beginning—more AI capabilities are on the way, so stay tuned for what’s next.

Claris FileMaker’s integration of AI is not merely an addition of new features, it’s a fundamental transformation of how custom applications are built and how businesses interact with their data.

By seamlessly blending low-code development with high-impact AI capabilities, FileMaker empowers users to create smarter, more intuitive solutions without requiring them to be AI experts.

FileMaker isn’t just adding AI, it’s meticulously building a platform designed to help you leverage AI effectively, securely, and reliably, ensuring your solutions are not only cutting-edge but also trustworthy.