AI-Assisted Software Development Lab
From Greenfield Innovation to Brownfield Modernization
August 27, 2026 | Houston, TX
Artificial intelligence is transforming every stage of the software development lifecycle, from designing and building new applications to understanding and modernizing the enterprise systems organizations already depend on every day.
The AI-Assisted Software Development Lab is a hands-on workshop that explores both perspectives. During the morning sessions, you'll learn how AI can improve software design, accelerate development, enhance code quality, and strengthen engineering practices through prompt engineering, context building, architecture-first thinking, and professional code review techniques.
In the afternoon, the focus shifts to existing enterprise applications, where you'll discover how AI can help analyze legacy systems, document architecture, identify technical debt, map dependencies, recover institutional knowledge, and support evidence-based modernization planning.
By experiencing both sides of modern software engineering, you'll gain practical techniques for applying AI throughout the software development lifecycle while building the confidence to develop new applications and modernize existing systems more effectively.
What You'll Experience
You’ll move between guided instruction and hands-on exploration, applying AI directly to real engineering challenges. Expect interactive exercises, collaborative problem‑solving, and practical tooling walkthroughs that show how AI fits into everyday workflows. You’ll experiment with modern development techniques, work through real architectural scenarios, and practice analyzing complex systems with AI support. Throughout the day, you’ll build intuition, confidence, and a concrete sense of how AI actually feels in the software development lifecycle, both when creating something new and when untangling what already exists.
AGENDA
| Thursday, August 27, 2026 | ||
| 8:30AM | Sign-In, Breakfast & NetworkingBREAKOUT | |
| 9:00AM | Welcome: The Two Sides of AI-Assisted Software DevelopmentBREAKOUT | Laurabeth Barker |
| 9:15AM | Greenfield Development: AI as Your Engineering PartnerBREAKOUT | Otto Dobretsberger |
| 9:45AM | Prompt Engineering, Context Building & Intent SpecificationBREAKOUT | Otto Dobretsberger |
| 10:30AM | Morning Refreshments & NetworkingBREAKOUT | |
| 10:45AM | Hands-On Greenfield Development LabBREAKOUT | Otto Dobretsberger |
| 11:30AM | Architecture Reviews & AI Code ValidationBREAKOUT | Otto Dobretsberger |
| 12:00PM | Catered Lunch & NetworkingBREAKOUT | |
| 1:00PM | Brownfield Reality: Where Most Organizations Spend Their TimeBREAKOUT | John Miller |
| 1:30PM | AI-Assisted Brownfield DiscoveryBREAKOUT | John Miller |
| Thursday, August 27, 2026 |
| 8:30AMBREAKOUT Sign-In, Breakfast & Networking |
| 9:00AMBREAKOUT Welcome: The Two Sides of AI-Assisted Software Development Laurabeth Barker |
| 9:15AMBREAKOUT Greenfield Development: AI as Your Engineering Partner Otto Dobretsberger |
| 9:45AMBREAKOUT Prompt Engineering, Context Building & Intent Specification Otto Dobretsberger |
| 10:30AMBREAKOUT Morning Refreshments & Networking |
| 10:45AMBREAKOUT Hands-On Greenfield Development Lab Otto Dobretsberger |
| 11:30AMBREAKOUT Architecture Reviews & AI Code Validation Otto Dobretsberger |
| 12:00PMBREAKOUT Catered Lunch & Networking |
| 1:00PMBREAKOUT Brownfield Reality: Where Most Organizations Spend Their Time John Miller |
| 1:30PMBREAKOUT AI-Assisted Brownfield Discovery John Miller |
SESSION DETAILS
Welcome: The Two Sides of AI-Assisted Software Development
Kick off the day with an overview of today's workshop and learn how AI is changing every phase of software development, from designing new applications to understanding and modernizing legacy systems.
Greenfield Development: AI as Your Engineering Partner
Explore practical techniques for using AI as a collaborative engineering partner while maintaining clean architecture, thoughtful design, and long-term maintainability throughout the development process.
Prompt Engineering, Context Building & Intent Specification
Discover prompt engineering techniques, context building, and intent specification strategies that improve code quality, reduce rework, and produce more predictable development outcomes.
Hands-On Greenfield Development Lab
Follow a complete AI-assisted development workflow from initial design through implementation while applying prompt engineering, architectural planning, and modern software engineering practices.
Architecture Reviews & AI Code Validation
See how professional development teams review, refine, and improve AI-generated code while maintaining engineering standards and architectural consistency.
Brownfield Reality: Where Most Organizations Spend Their Time
Explore why brownfield modernization presents different challenges than greenfield development and why AI-assisted discovery has become a critical capability for enterprise engineering teams.
AI-Assisted Brownfield Discovery
Watch AI-assisted software archaeology in action as an existing enterprise application is analyzed to reveal business logic, dependencies, documentation gaps, and modernization opportunities.