Oracle Adds Plain-English Calculations to APEX Reports Without Changing Source Queries

Oracle APEX users can describe a new calculation in everyday language and have AI turn it into a report column, without changing the underlying database query. Oracle detailed the APEX 26.2 enhancements on October 6, 2026, alongside predefined commands for common report actions and a refresh of the reporting interface.

From menu choices to typed commands

Interactive Reports let users reshape a developer-built report through filters, sorting, charts, grouping and pivots without editing its SQL—the query that retrieves its data. APEX 26.1 introduced a natural-language layer that translated requests into those existing settings. Users could access it through Search with AI or a conversational Interactive Report Assistant.

Version 26.2 adds a more prescribed route for short, predictable instructions. Templates include filter %column by %value, sort %column desc and hide %column. Other templates handle column searches, pivots, showing columns, grouping rows into sections and resetting a report. A sort command without a specified direction defaults to ascending order.

When a request matches a template, APEX checks its columns and values against the current report, enabled capabilities and available lookup or reference data before applying the action. Oracle describes support in both AI-enabled and non-AI reports, but distinguishes their behavior: in non-AI reports, supported key-phrase requests are treated as row searches.

A calculation becomes a report setting

The new computed-column feature derives values from existing report columns. Users describe the calculation in business language, and AI translates it into a report computation using eligible columns and their identifiers. Oracle’s example asks for Weighted Pipeline as Amount times Probability divided by 100, producing this calculation:

Weighted Pipeline = Amount * Probability / 100

For an opportunity with an Amount of 200,000 and a Probability of 60 percent, Oracle’s example returns 120,000. The resulting column becomes a standard report customization that users can review, edit, save or remove. Neither the underlying SQL query nor the data source changes.

Filters and layouts get a refresh

The interface update also changes manual reporting. Column-header filters support multiple selected values; reopening an existing filter shows its selections, and changes update that filter rather than adding a conflicting one. Numeric filters accept minimums, maximums or ranges. Date filters offer presets, exact dates and start-and-end ranges.

Active settings appear as visible chips that users can modify or remove. Layout changes include drag-and-drop column ordering, better frozen-column support and a reorganized Actions menu. The reset control appears when filters or customizations are applied. Oracle says existing saved reports, subscriptions, downloads and report-management capabilities remain compatible.