The InfoQ Podcast Software Evolution with Microservices and LLMs: A Conversation with Chris Richardson
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Feb 23, 2026 
Chris Richardson, software architect and microservices pioneer who created microservices.io and wrote Microservices Patterns. He discusses evolving monoliths into microservices for faster delivery. He covers breaking apart code and data, data ownership and consistency trade-offs. He also explores using generative AI to understand codebases and the limits of LLMs for architectural decisions.
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Incrementally Extract Services From The Monolith
- Modernize by carving modules out of the monolith and refactoring both code and the corresponding database slices together.
- Target extractable modules and untangle their dependencies so they can interact via coarse-grained service interfaces.
Refactor Data And Code Together During Migration
- When splitting services, treat the database schema as part of the module and refactor columns/tables simultaneously with code.
- Use read-only replicas and replication back to hide ownership changes while moving functionality to a new service.
Expect Temporary Consistency Tradeoffs During Migration
- Temporary hacks (like read-only replicas) create eventual consistency trade-offs but can be pragmatic migration steps.
- Richardson expects these kludges to shrink as more modules are moved so services access single-source-of-truth owners directly.
