AI-First Software Modernisation: Building Platforms Ready for AI Agents
Everyone wants AI agents running their business. Almost no platform is ready for them. 88% of organisations now use AI in at least one business function, yet only 39% report any impact on earnings at the enterprise level, and in no single function do more than 10% report scaling AI agents.
The root cause is rarely the AI itself; it's an amplifier, speeding up well-structured systems just as efficiently as it amplifies coupling, poor test coverage and knowledge gaps. Genuine AI adoption isn't a technology purchase, it's a modernisation journey resting on two foundations: an AI-ready system (a modular, observable architecture for AI tooling and agents to operate safely) and AI-accelerated engineering (the practices that let teams build, change and ship with AI without the platform falling behind). Neither alone gets you there.
In this special panel discussion, brought to you in partnership by Codurance and the London CTO Community, we explore where the real challenges and opportunities lie in AI-first software modernisation.
We'll open with a short talk from Codurance CEO Mash Badar, outlining his framework for building the foundations of successful AI-first modernisation. This will be followed by a panel of fellow CTOs and industry experts sharing practical insights and war stories; what's worked, what's failed, and how they've navigated technology modernisation to deliver real business outcomes.
Our expert panel includes:
Alan Jackson, Client Solutions Director, Codurance (Host)
Mash Badar, CEO & Co-Founder, Codurance
Ian Kershaw, CTO & Co-Founder, Strata Executive
Aditi Agarwal, Fractional CTO, Mastermind Digital
Brian Harkin, CTO, Centrus
About our panel
Alan Jackson, Client Solutions Director at Codurance
With more than 20 years’ of experience in technology, Alan works with organisations to shape technology strategies and software delivery approaches that enable meaningful business change. Alan also works with clients to explore how AI-enabled engineering practices and AI-powered systems can unlock new opportunities while maintaining the quality, reliability and discipline required for production systems.
Mash Badar, CEO and Co-Founder at Codurance
Mash combines over 25 years of enterprise technology experience with a deep passion for software craftsmanship. He specialises in aligning business strategy with technology, helping clients build scalable solutions and resilient engineering teams. Pragmatic and outcome-focused, Mash is dedicated to embedding sustainable practices that ensure long-term organisational success. During his diverse career, he has succeeded in invigorating large ailing software projects as well as creating highly effective software teams and departments. His broad and deep technical knowledge, organisational skills, craft focus, and empathy to people involved have been integral to his success.
Ian Kershaw, CTO & Co-Founder at STRATA Executive
Ian has spent his career building and scaling software for VC-backed, PE-backed and publicly listed businesses. He joined Cazoo early, scaling the engineering team behind its rise to unicorn status. Later, as CTO of Artlogic, a PE-backed B2B SaaS business, he led its move to 100% agentic code development. He is now CTO and co-founder of an AI-native startup, STRATA Executive, putting agents to work both in building the platform and at the heart of the product.
Aditi Agarwal, Fractional CTO at Mastermind Digital
Aditi works with scale-ups, PE-backed businesses, founder-led companies and complex organisations that need senior technology leadership during periods of transformation, delivery pressure or platform change. Aditi typically supports clients where there is a need to stabilise execution, modernise legacy platforms, improve engineering and delivery effectiveness, or create clearer alignment between product, technology, operations and executive teams. Aditi bring hands-on executive experience from CTO roles at Blue Light Card, Pizza Hut Digital Ventures / Yum! Brands and Realife Tech, where she led major platform transformations, scaled technology teams, improved delivery performance and supported high-growth digital businesses operating at significant scale.
Brian Harkin, CTO at Centrus
Brian is a Chief Technology Officer who turns engineering capability into commercial outcomes: creating revenue, improving operating leverage and reducing operational risk across financial services. Over the last decade, he have delivered more than £100m of realised platform revenue across global banking and clearing, alongside the creation of new commercial products in financial advisory. At Centrus, Brian created and launched Atlas, a proprietary digital product suite, moving from concept to first client go-live in under seven months.
Alongside the talk and panel, there'll be plenty of opportunity to network with the community, contribute to the discussion, and leave with practical ideas you can put to work. Drinks and refreshments are also provided.
Event timings
18:00 - Arrival and networking with drinks and nibbles
18:45 - Talk from Mash Badar
19:00 - Panel discussion
20:00-21:00 - Further networking
Who the event is for
CTOs and senior technology leaders responsible for building, scaling or leading engineering teams.
About Codurance
Codurance helps tech-enabled businesses unlock trapped value in legacy software and manual processes by modernising systems and software delivery with AI-accelerated engineering and agent-ready architectures.
Spaces are limited for CTOs and tech leaders who lead teams that build or manage products, platforms or engineering within their own companies. Unfortunately those that represent IT vendors will not be admitted entry to the event so please only apply to attend if you fit the attendee criteria.