Uploaded June 2026 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago
This presentation was recorded at GOTO Copenhagen 2025. #GOTOcon #GOTOcph
gotocph.com
Gregor Hohpe - Author of "Platform Strategy", "The Software Architect Elevator", et al.
RESOURCES
twitter.com/ghohpe
linkedin.com/in/ghohpe
eaipatterns.com
architectelevator.com
Links
twitter.com/ghohpe/status/1513362076990803969
github.com/97-things/97-things-every-programmer-should-know
youtu.be/Zrj7RD7G24Q
thingiverse.com/thing:6513
ABSTRACT
Let’s be honest, the tech we use today is amazing, but it can also be complex.
It’s only natural that teams want to build platforms that hide this complexity to improve productivity, avoid mistakes, and reduce cognitive load. But they may be misled to believe that the more complexity they hide, the better their platform is. Instead, they end up creating dangerous illusions!
This talk reflects on two decades of building complex distributed systems, highlighting where abstractions helped and where illusions led to major disappointments. [...]
TIMECODES
00:00 Intro
02:03 We shifted everything so far left, it piled up
04:12 Economies of scale & speed
14:23 Platform # IT service
16:0 Overcoming constraints
22:52 Standing on shoulders of giants
27:48 Abstractions vs. Composition
45:52 Outro
30:53 Build abstractions, not illusions!
Read the full abstract here:
gotocph.com/2025/sessions/3672
RECOMMENDED BOOKS
Gregor Hohpe • Platform Strategy • amzn.to/4cxfYdb
Gregor Hohpe • The Software Architect Elevator • amzn.to/3F6d2ax
Gregor Hohpe • Cloud Strategy • amzn.to/3TOS3Nv
Gregor Hohpe • Enterprise Integration Patterns, Vol 2 • amzn.to/3TNedQ3
Gregor Hohpe & Bobby Woolf • Enterprise Integration Patterns • amzn.to/3DqII9l
Gregor Hohpe • 37 Things One Architect Knows About IT Transformation • amzn.to/3z8uhnw
Kevlin Henney & Trisha Gee • 97 Things Every Java Programmer Should Know • amzn.to/3kiTwJJ
https://bsky.app/profile/gotocon.com
twitter.com/GOTOcon
linkedin.com/company/goto-
instagram.com/goto_con
facebook.com/GOTOConferences
#SoftwareArchitecture #PlatformEngineering #PlatformAsAProduct #ComplexDistributedSystems #DistributedSystems #PlatformAbstraction #ControlFlow #Abstraction #GregorHohpe #GOTO
CHANNEL MEMBERSHIP BONUS
Join this channel to get early access to videos & other perks:
youtube.com/channel/UCs_tLP3AiwYKwdUHpltJPuA/join
Looking for a unique learning experience?
Attend the next GOTO conference near you! Get your ticket at https://gotopia.tech
Sign up for updates and specials at https://gotopia.tech/newsletter
SUBSCRIBE TO OUR CHANNEL - new videos posted almost daily.
youtube.com/user/GotoConferences/?sub_confirmation=1
This presentation was recorded at GOTO Copenhagen 2025. #GOTOcon #GOTOcph
gotocph.com
Gregor Hohpe - Author of "Platform Strategy", "The Software Architect Elevator", et al.
RESOURCES
twitter.com/ghohpe
linkedin.com/in/ghohpe
eaipatterns.com
architectelevator.com
Links
twitter.com/ghohpe/status/1513362076990803969
github.com/97-things/97-things-every-programmer-should-know
youtu.be/Zrj7RD7G24Q
thingiverse.com/thing:6513
ABSTRACT
Let’s be honest, the tech we use today is amazing, but it can also be complex.
It’s only natural that teams want to build platforms that hide this complexity to improve productivity, avoid mistakes, and reduce cognitive load. But they may be misled to believe that the more complexity they hide, the better their platform is. Instead, they end up creating dangerous illusions!
This talk reflects on two decades of building complex distributed systems, highlighting where abstractions helped and where illusions led to major disappointments. [...]
TIMECODES
00:00 Intro
02:03 We shifted everything so far left, it piled up
04:12 Economies of scale & speed
14:23 Platform # IT service
16:0 Overcoming constraints
22:52 Standing on shoulders of giants
27:48 Abstractions vs. Composition
45:52 Outro
30:53 Build abstractions, not illusions!
Read the full abstract here:
gotocph.com/2025/sessions/3672
RECOMMENDED BOOKS
Gregor Hohpe • Platform Strategy • amzn.to/4cxfYdb
Gregor Hohpe • The Software Architect Elevator • amzn.to/3F6d2ax
Gregor Hohpe • Cloud Strategy • amzn.to/3TOS3Nv
Gregor Hohpe • Enterprise Integration Patterns, Vol 2 • amzn.to/3TNedQ3
Gregor Hohpe & Bobby Woolf • Enterprise Integration Patterns • amzn.to/3DqII9l
Gregor Hohpe • 37 Things One Architect Knows About IT Transformation • amzn.to/3z8uhnw
Kevlin Henney & Trisha Gee • 97 Things Every Java Programmer Should Know • amzn.to/3kiTwJJ
https://bsky.app/profile/gotocon.com
twitter.com/GOTOcon
linkedin.com/company/goto-
instagram.com/goto_con
facebook.com/GOTOConferences
#SoftwareArchitecture #PlatformEngineering #PlatformAsAProduct #ComplexDistributedSystems #DistributedSystems #PlatformAbstraction #ControlFlow #Abstraction #GregorHohpe #GOTO
CHANNEL MEMBERSHIP BONUS
Join this channel to get early access to videos & other perks:
youtube.com/channel/UCs_tLP3AiwYKwdUHpltJPuA/join
Looking for a unique learning experience?
Attend the next GOTO conference near you! Get your ticket at https://gotopia.tech
Sign up for updates and specials at https://gotopia.tech/newsletter
SUBSCRIBE TO OUR CHANNEL - new videos posted almost daily.
youtube.com/user/GotoConferences/?sub_confirmation=1
