, Helium [3rd Floor]
AI-assisted coding became the default. Tools like GitHub Copilot, Cursor, and Claude can generate hundreds of lines of Python in seconds. However, the real challenge isn’t how fast we generate code — it’s how we ensure that generated code actually represents our intent, follows best practices, and integrates cleanly into existing systems.
In this talk, I share my personal journey adopting Spec-Driven Development (SDD), a way to engineer the context in which AI writes code. Using real examples from my daily work building production-grade RAG systems, I show how specifications can become a practical way to interact with AI coding tools.
I present an explicitly opinionated comparison of emerging tools such as SpecKit and OpenSpec, focusing on what each tool is good at, where it breaks down, and when I would (or would not) use it.
AI Engineering is fundamentally about system building. It is the transition from demos to production-grade Python systems that must be scalable, reliable, and testable. In my experience, one way to achieve this consistently with AI-generated code is to stop coding first —and start specifying first. Spec-Driven Development (SDD) is a practical methodology for AI-assisted development. It is not about heavy bureaucracy; it’s about creating a "Single Source of Truth" that both humans and AI agents can rely on.
In this talk, I will show how I use existing tools like OpenSpec and SpecKit to develop my own AI-assisted workflows that actually fit my way of thinking. I will present an explicitly opinionated comparison of these tools—not to choose a winner, but to understand the trade-offs:
- SpecKit: My choice for larger features with many dependencies.
- OpenSpec: My choice for smaller features, rapid prototyping, or bug fixes.
The talk is grounded in real-world features I have developed in my daily work as an AI Engineer, particularly in building RAG systems.
What You Will Learn:
- What is Spec-Driven Development? A clear breakdown of the spec-first workflow.
- The Paradigm Shift: Why "specifying" may be the new "coding" in a world of Large Language Models.
- The Subjective Tool Guide: A practical comparison of SpecKit vs. OpenSpec regarding their technical benefits and trade-offs.
- Customization: How to adapt existing tools to fit your personal engineering workflow.
Alina Dallmann is an AI Engineer at scieneers GmbH. As a computer scientist, she combines her passion for classical software engineering with modern, data-driven projects. Most recently, her focus has been on building production-ready Retrieval-Augmented Generation (RAG) systems.