PyCon DE & PyData 2026

Werner Gothein

Experienced software architect and risk management expert with a focus on AI-ready, modular platform design. Over 25 years in developing and integrating financial systems, orchestrating complex workflows, and enabling rapid AI deployment while maintaining governance and stability.


Session

04-15
17:35
30min
AI Is Changing the Game: Building Modular, AI-Ready Platforms on Top of Legacy Systems
Werner Gothein

AI is fundamentally changing how quickly business and domain teams can create new logic, validations, and insights. In regulated environments, this new speed collides head-on with legacy systems, monolithic architectures and IT landscapes that were never designed for continuous AI-driven change.

This talk presents an open, Python-based platform architecture that turns AI-driven pressure into an architectural advantage. Instead of embedding AI into existing monoliths, the platform introduces a central control layer that orchestrates independent, stateless apps—ranging from classical algorithms to AI agents—without binding them to specific infrastructure or legacy constraints.

The control layer, implemented using Python and optionally Django, provides workflow orchestration, security, tenant management, and self-service registration of new components. This allows domain teams to deploy AI agents—such as anomaly detection for regulatory reporting—within days, while IT retains governance, auditability, and operational stability.

The talk argues that AI will amplify architectural weaknesses—and shows why modular orchestration layers will become essential for AI-ready systems far beyond finance.

PyCon: Programming & Software Engineering & Testing
Palladium [2nd Floor]