Newcastle · TusPark Grainger Hub Newcastle
Hosted by Software Crafters Newcastle
Practise designing AI-enabled software systems in this hands-on architecture kata in Newcastle on 14 October 2026. Hosted by Software Crafters Newcastle, this two-hour session offers a safe, practical environment in which to sharpen your architectural thinking. Rather than listening to a conventional talk, you will work through a realistic business problem, explore possible technical approaches and make the kinds of trade-offs that shape real software projects. How the kata works Participants will divide into small groups, with each team receiving a business problem to solve. Your challenge is to design a technical architecture suited to that problem and its context. A Product Owner will be available so that you can clarify requirements as the exercise develops, just as you would when navigating uncertainty on a live project. During the kata, your group will: - Analyse the business problem and identify its architectural needs - Use AI to support research, exploration and design decisions - Compare technologies and weigh up technical trade-offs - Record ideas using the supplied paper, pens and sticky notes - Present your proposed architecture and technology choices - Take part in an open discussion with the wider room Each group will have access to one laptop for using AI during the exercise. If you have your own AI subscription and are happy to use it, the organisers ask that you bring a laptop. The emphasis remains on collaborative reasoning: AI provides assistance, while participants evaluate the context, requirements and consequences of each design choice. Who should attend? The session welcomes experienced developers, software architects, AI engineers and people who are only beginning to explore software architecture. No previous architecture experience is required, and you do not need to have attended an earlier kata. That mix of experience levels gives everyone an opportunity to contribute a perspective, compare approaches and learn from Newcastle’s software crafting community. Practical details The event runs from 6:00pm to 8:00pm BST on Wednesday 14 October 2026 at TusPark Grainger Hub Newcastle, Maybrook House, 27 Grainger Street, Newcastle upon Tyne NE1 5JE. View the event and registration details
