Marco Lenzo
Platform Owner and Lead Architect

TDD, ATDD, BDD: Architecture and Communication in the Age of AI

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Architectural success isn’t just about choosing the right technologies — it’s about ensuring alignment
between developers, testers, and business stakeholders. In this talk, we’ll demystify three often confused methodologies: Test-Driven Development (TDD), Acceptance Test-Driven Development(ATDD), and Behavior-Driven Development (BDD). Though they sound similar, each serves a distinct role in shaping how teams communicate, design, and deliver software. We’ll explore how these practices influence system  architecture, and crucially, why they matter even more in the age of AI-powered development. As tools like GitHub Copilot and ChatGPT become increasingly embedded in coding workflows, having well-structured, test-first design patterns becomes vital. TDD and BDD don't just help humans write better code, they guide AI assistants toward more accurate, maintainable, and intention-aligned output.

You’ll leave with a clear mental model of TDD, ATDD, and BDD, practical tips for integrating them into your architecture, and an understanding of how these methodologies help AI assistants support, not sabotage, your codebase.

Takeaways:

- Clear distinctions between TDD, ATDD, and BDD—and when to use each
- How these practices support architectural clarity and testability
- Why structured tests and specifications are  essential in AI-augmented development
- Guidance on fostering collaboration between humans, tests, and AI tools