Kill the Vibe? Architecture in the age of AI

AI is changing how we write software — but what about software architecture? Vibe Coding with LLMs enables quick results, but often creates emergent structures that are difficult to understand. In a world where systems can be built cheaply, architectural work isn’t becoming less important—it’s becoming essential: cycles are shorter, feedback is faster, and design and implementation are more tightly intertwined.

In this talk, I’ll dive into how LLMs are reshaping architectural practices and how solid architectural principles can help you make sense of AI-generated code. Using concrete tools like AI review agents, LLM coding workflows, and custom analysis agents, I’ll demonstrate how AI-supported projects can maintain quality and speed. I’ll also discuss proven architectural methods that hold up in AI environments, including lightweight reviews, AI-supported reflection, and set-based design.

Participants will learn:
– How to turn chaotic “vibe coding” into a disciplined approach
– How to use LLMs for continuous architectural guidance
– How to integrate architectural practices into AI workflows

This session is for architects, tech leads, and developers who want to build professional software systems with AI, rather than just write cheap code.

Transcript

1. 1 Kill the Vibe? Architecture in the Age of AI embarc.de Kill the Vibe? Architecture in the age of AI SAG, 11/25 Stefan Toth
2. 1 Kill the Vibe? Architecture in the Age of AI embarc.de Stefan Toth Stefan.Toth@embarc.de www.embarc.de linkedin.com/in/sto-embarc CEO, Software Architect, Agile Coach
3. 2 Kill the Vibe? Architecture in the Age of AI embarc.de
4. 3 Kill the Vibe? Architecture in the Age of AI embarc.de Methodology How to design and evolve Systems with Gen-AI Today I focus on… Solutions Considerations and patterns for AI usage inside solutions
5. 4 Kill the Vibe? Architecture in the Age of AI embarc.de AI & Architecture
6. 5 Kill the Vibe? Architecture in the Age of AI embarc.de Kill the Vibe? Architecture in the age of AI SAG, 11/25 Stefan Toth
7. 6 Kill the Vibe? Architecture in the Age of AI embarc.de Vibe [vaɪb] That intangible something that tells you wether someone‘s about to offer you cookies or aggressively mansplain quantum physics.
8. 7 Kill the Vibe? Architecture in the Age of AI embarc.de Vibe [vaɪb] That intangible something that tells you wether someone‘s about to offer you cookies or aggressively mansplain quantum physics.
9. 8 Kill the Vibe? Architecture in the Age of AI embarc.de Vibe-Coding [vaɪb koʊ.dɪŋ] In its most exploratory form, the user relies entirely on the AI output to function as intended. As Karpathy put it, it’s as if you “forget that the code even exists.
10. 9 Kill the Vibe? Architecture in the Age of AI embarc.de Vibe-Coding [vaɪb koʊ.dɪŋ] In its most exploratory form, the user relies entirely on the AI output to function as intended. As Karpathy put it, it’s as if you “forget that the code even exists.
11. 10 Kill the Vibe? Architecture in the Age of AI embarc.de
12. 11 Kill the Vibe? Architecture in the Age of AI embarc.de F*** yeah!
13. 12 Kill the Vibe? Architecture in the Age of AI embarc.de Vibe-Coding [vaɪb koʊ.dɪŋ] In its most exploratory form, the user relies entirely on the AI output to function as intended. As Karpathy put it, it’s as if you “forget that the code even exists.
14. 13 Kill the Vibe? Architecture in the Age of AI embarc.de
15. 14 Kill the Vibe? Architecture in the Age of AI embarc.de
16. 15 Kill the Vibe? Architecture in the Age of AI embarc.de Can we create good vibes WITHOUT just being ignorant or superficial?
17. 16 Kill the Vibe? Architecture in the Age of AI embarc.de Goal-Orientation, Flow, Sufficient Quality…
18. 17 Kill the Vibe? Architecture in the Age of AI embarc.de entered the chat
19. 18 Kill the Vibe? Architecture in the Age of AI embarc.de AI Dvelopment Approaches
20. 19 Kill the Vibe? Architecture in the Age of AI embarc.de Generative AI in Software Development
21. 20 Kill the Vibe? Architecture in the Age of AI embarc.de Context Engineering Regain overview and controllability
22. 21 Kill the Vibe? Architecture in the Age of AI embarc.de
23. 22 Kill the Vibe? Architecture in the Age of AI embarc.de
24. 23 Kill the Vibe? Architecture in the Age of AI embarc.de What is in an LLMs context? Context engineering is the discipline of building dynamic systems that supply an LLM with everything it needs to accomplish a task.
25. 24 Kill the Vibe? Architecture in the Age of AI embarc.de Many options…
26. 25 Kill the Vibe? Architecture in the Age of AI embarc.de Product Requirement Prompts (PRPs) Iterate: Validate tests and reqs INITIAL.md Execute PRP: Load, Plan, Implement, Validate Generate PRP PRP.md BasePRP.md Review / Check Spec-Driven Development (SDD)
27. 26 Kill the Vibe? Architecture in the Age of AI embarc.de Product Requirement Prompts (PRPs) ▪ The all important first prompt…
28. 27 Kill the Vibe? Architecture in the Age of AI embarc.de Beware of Context Overflow!
29. 28 Kill the Vibe? Architecture in the Age of AI embarc.de Modularize and Isolate!
30. 29 Kill the Vibe? Architecture in the Age of AI embarc.de Modularize and Isolate!
31. 30 Kill the Vibe? Architecture in the Age of AI embarc.de Generative AI in Software Development
32. 31 Kill the Vibe? Architecture in the Age of AI embarc.de Automated Feedback Interlock Architectural practice with Development
33. 32 Kill the Vibe? Architecture in the Age of AI embarc.de Don‘t generate your tests carelessly...
34. 33 Kill the Vibe? Architecture in the Age of AI embarc.de Separate Test and Review Agents
35. 34 Kill the Vibe? Architecture in the Age of AI embarc.de AI Review: Multi-Agent Solution Language Detector Graph Constructor Modularization Detection Other Tools: Storage, IFs, Function Calls, MCPs, … Orchestrator Dependency Analyser Semantic Analyser Documentation Octopus Data Flow Constructor Technology Detector Pattern Identifier basic composite analytical
36. 35 Kill the Vibe? Architecture in the Age of AI embarc.de Language, Technology & Arch. Style
37. 36 Kill the Vibe? Architecture in the Age of AI embarc.de Graph Constructor ▪ Entity Relationships ▪ Method Calls ▪ End Points ▪ DB-Relations ▪ Remote Procedure Calls ▪ Config-Dependencies ▪ Semantic Proximity ▪ Change Dependencies (Git) ▪ …
38. 37 Kill the Vibe? Architecture in the Age of AI embarc.de Modularization and Data Flow
39. 38 Kill the Vibe? Architecture in the Age of AI embarc.de Guardrails ▪ Preventative guardrails are proactive guardrails that specify the outer bounds of what developers can do. ▪ Detective guardrails are reactive guardrails scan your environment for non-compliance, then either raise the issue or take corrective action.
40. 40 Kill the Vibe? Architecture in the Age of AI embarc.de Classic View: Architecture and Implementation Architecture Implementation Model / Sketch Code uses writes uses
41. 41 Kill the Vibe? Architecture in the Age of AI embarc.de Agentic: Architecture and Implementation Architecture & Development Model / Sketch Code generates is translated to uses context
42. 42 Kill the Vibe? Architecture in the Age of AI embarc.de Generative AI in Software Development
43. 43 Kill the Vibe? Architecture in the Age of AI embarc.de Improved Empirical Loop Continuous learning process – individually and within the organization
44. 44 Kill the Vibe? Architecture in the Age of AI embarc.de Hypothesis-Driven Architecture
45. 45 Kill the Vibe? Architecture in the Age of AI embarc.de Encapsulate Agentic Development Agentic
46. 46 Kill the Vibe? Architecture in the Age of AI embarc.de Agentic Architecture is NOT for free ▪ Know the quality goals ▪ Make constraints explicit ▪ Work on the domain and structure clearly ▪ Create good interfaces ▪ Define language characteristics and best practices ▪ Establish appropriate testing approaches ▪ Professionalize integration, deployment, and monitoring ▪ Establish AI usage standards (including processes, context, etc.) ▪ …
47. 55 Kill the Vibe? Architecture in the Age of AI embarc.de Thank You! Feedback & Questions?
48. 56 Kill the Vibe? Architecture in the Age of AI embarc.de Slides & Infos: embarc.de
49. 57 Kill the Vibe? Architecture in the Age of AI embarc.de
50. 58 Kill the Vibe? Architecture in the Age of AI embarc.de Find me on LinkedIn…