Why this decision matters
Use bounded services or modules, read-only pilots, gradual rollout, monitoring and rollback to limit the impact of AI integration on core business systems.
Reuse existing identity, data and workflows, limit first-phase scope and design AI failure to degrade safely instead of blocking the business process.
Conditions to confirm before development
- Inventory reusable APIs, authentication, data and user entry points
- Select a low-risk first feature that can be disabled independently
- Design fallback for timeout, no result, bad output and provider outage
- Use gradual rollout, monitoring and explicit rollback controls
Implementation and delivery approach
Validate in sidecar or read-only mode before enabling writes. Keep the AI module loosely coupled and regression-test interface changes.
Compare workflows, interface load, response time, errors and human handling before and after the change.
Acceptance boundary
Missing APIs, inconsistent permissions or low-quality historical data require foundational work. AI integration does not remove technical debt.