Martin Fowler summarizes a Feb 2026 Thoughtworks retreat in Deer Valley marking the Agile Manifesto’s 25th anniversary, focused on how AI and LLMs will shape software development. About 50 practitioners, pundits, and clients met in an Open Space format under the Chatham House Rule. Rather than a single narrative, Fowler points to his dated “fragments” posts for insights and notes a Thoughtworks key-takeaways PDF; he also links to participant reflections (e.g., Annie Vella) and coverage (Rachel Laycock’s interview).
Bliki: Future Of Software Development
In Februrary 2026, Thoughtworks hosted a workshop called “The Future of Software Development” in Deer Valley Utah. While it was held in the mountains of Utah as a nod to the 25th anniversary of the writing of Manifesto for Agile Software Development, it was a forward-looking event, focusing on how the rise of AI and LLMs would affect our profession.
About 50 or so people were invited, a mixture of Thoughtworkers, software pundits, and clients - all picked for being active in the LLM-fuelled changes. We met for a day and a half of Open Space conference. It was an intense, and enjoyable event.
I haven't attempted to make a coherent narrative of what we discussed and learned there. I have instead posted various insights into my fragments posts:
The retreat was held under the Chatham House Rule, so most comments aren't attributed, unless I received specific permission.
Thoughtworks published a summary of thoughts from the event.
Other posts from participants
- Annie Vella posted her take-aways
- Rachel Laycock was interviewed by The New Stack.
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