The Espresso Machine Problem: Building Smarter Apps

You know that feeling when you ship an app… and then immediately realize you forgot one use case?

So you go back, tweak your logic, maybe add an if condition, or extend your switch block. Something like:

switch (coffeeType)
{
    case "espresso":
        BrewEspresso();
        break;
    case "latte":
        BrewLatte();
        break;
    default:
        BrewDefault();
        break;
}

It works. It’s fast. It gets the job done.
But it also locks you into a fixed menu.

What happens when a user wants a “creamy espresso with cinnamon and honey, no foam”?

Well… that’s not an option.

So now you’re back in the codebase again. Another condition. Another branch. Another deploy.

And if your app runs on mobile or IoT — congrats, you’ve just created a customer support ticket disguised

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⚙️ Delegates: More Flexibility, Still Rigid

So you ditch the switch.

You clean things up with delegates — plug in logic instead of branching everywhere.

Suddenly, your code feels nicer:

csharpCopyEditpublic delegate void BrewHandler();

public void Brew(BrewHandler brewLogic)
{
    OnBrewStarted?.Invoke();
    brewLogic();
    OnBrewSuccess?.Invoke();
}

Now you can write:

coffeeMachine.Brew(BrewLatte);

Or even:

coffeeMachine.Brew(() => BrewEspressoWithCinnamonAndHoney());

No more bloated conditions.
No more tangled trees.
You’re plugging in behavior directly — and that’s powerful.

But here’s the catch:

👉 The user still only gets what you define.

You’re still the barista.

If they want something new, you still have to code it.
Build it. Ship it. And users will have to update the app.

So yes, it’s more elegant. But it’s still static.

And in a world where user intent keeps changing, static doesn’t scale.

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🧠 Agentic Thinking: From Recipes to Intent

Here’s where things shift.

Instead of deploying coffee recipes…
You deploy a system that understands what the user wants.

They don’t need to pick from options.
They just say:

“Make me a creamy espresso, no foam, add cinnamon.”

And boom — it’s brewed.
Even if the machine’s never made that drink before.

That’s agentic.

It’s not about hardcoding options or manually wiring up logic.
It’s about interpreting intent and generating the steps to fulfill it.

Imagine this under the hood:

var intent = ParseUserRequest("Creamy espresso, no foam, cinnamon");
var strategy = StrategyBuilder.Build(intent);
coffeeMachine.Brew(strategy);

The logic isn't stuck in your codebase.
It’s built at runtime.
It lives on the server.
It adapts as user preferences evolve.

You’re not shipping recipes anymore.
You’re shipping a system that can learn to cook.

That’s the leap from flexible code…
to intelligent systems.

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💡 Why This Matters (Like… Really Matters)

Most apps today are stuck in “deployment logic” mode.

You ship the logic.
Users run that logic.
And every time something changes, they have to update the app.

That’s fine…
Until your users:

• Want something you didn’t hardcode

• Need faster feature delivery

• Expect your app to just understand them

Even with delegates and config flags, you’re still pushing decisions from your side.

But what if logic wasn’t static?
What if the user’s intent drove the execution?
What if you didn’t have to update the app every time a new feature dropped?

Agentic logic flips the model.

Now, your app becomes:

• Lighter to ship (you’re not bundling every possible logic path)

• Faster to adapt (new logic lives server-side)

• Smarter over time (intent can trigger learning, not just conditionals)

And even in offline-first apps?
You can cache strategies, sync in the background, and still keep your user’s intent at the center.

This isn’t just a dev upgrade.
It’s a user experience shift.

📌 TL;DR
We’re moving from “what you coded” to “what the user wants.”

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🧩 How This Actually Works (A Rough Blueprint)

Let’s break the idea down simply.

🛠️ Old Model

switch(userInput)
{
    case "espresso":
        MakeEspresso();
        break;
    case "latte":
        MakeLatte();
        break;
    default:
        ShowError();
        break;
}

Your logic is locked in. If someone asks for “iced honey cinnamon macchiato,” they’re out of luck unless you ship a new version.

Even with delegates:

machine.Brew(CustomLatteWithHoney);

You still wrote CustomLatteWithHoney somewhere. You deployed it. It’s static.

🚀 Agentic Model (Rough Concept)

Now imagine this:

string userIntent = "creamy espresso, no foam, add cinnamon";

// 1. Send to intent parser
var parsedIntent = IntentParser.Parse(userIntent);

// 2. Fetch matching strategy from the server
var strategy = StrategyResolver.Resolve(parsedIntent);

// 3. Execute the strategy
machine.Brew(strategy);

The logic isn’t hardcoded.
It’s:

• Parsed from user intent

• Matched dynamically

• Delivered from the server

• Executed in real-time

Your CoffeeMachine didn’t know how to make that drink before…
Now it does — without a version update.

⚠️ It’s not magic. It’s just shifting:

• From predefined switches

• To dynamic strategy injection

• Driven by user intent

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🧠 Where Delegates Still Matter (And Always Will)

Before you toss delegates aside like yesterday’s filter coffee, let’s clear this up:

Agentic apps don’t replace delegates — they extend them.

🧾 Think of it this way:

Delegates are how you inject behavior in C#.
They let you say:

machine.Brew(myCustomStrategy);

That’s flexibility. You can swap logic at runtime without rewriting the machine itself.

But the limitation?
You, the developer, still define myCustomStrategy.
The user can’t create new strategies unless you ship an update.

🔁 Delegates + Dynamic Strategy = Magic

In the agentic flow:

• Delegates are still the gateway for executing logic.

• But the logic they wrap? That can now come dynamically from:

  • a server,

  • a remote config,

  • or even real-time AI output.

You’re no longer just writing strategies —
You’re building systems that know how to plug in new ones without manual updates.

⚙️ Still C#

You might end up writing:

var brewFunc = strategyResolver.Resolve(userIntent);
machine.Brew(brewFunc);

That brewFunc? Still a delegate.
But it’s not hardcoded anymore. It’s pulled in based on context and intent.

Delegates remain the bridge.
What’s changing is who builds the bridge — and when.

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🏗️ How This Changes App Architecture (And Why It’s a Big Deal)

Let’s be honest — most apps today are versioned boxes.

You:

• Code features

• Bundle logic

• Ship it all

• Users install it

• Repeat when something changes

Even with clean architecture, dependency injection, and all the patterns in the world...
you're still delivering frozen logic.

🍳 The Delegate Pattern = Better Cooking

You moved from hardcoded switch cases to flexible strategies with delegates.
Nice. Now your app can cook different meals, as long as you pre-cook the recipes.

But what happens when a user wants a new combo?
Your app shrugs. “Update me.”

🚀 Agentic Logic = Live Kitchen

With an agentic approach:

• Logic is pulled at runtime

• Behavior adapts to user intent

• Your app becomes a host, not a container

It’s no longer just “run method A or B.”
It’s “interpret what the user wants and go fetch or generate method X.”

🔁 From Pull Requests to Pull Logic

In the old model:

To add new behavior, you make a PR and release it.

In this model:

You ship a system that knows where and how to get new logic on the fly.

Architecturally, this means designing your app to:

• Interpret input (not match it to fixed options)

• Resolve behavior (via delegate/strategy resolver)

• Execute safely (with guardrails, logging, maybe even fallbacks)

This isn’t just flexible — it’s evolutionary.

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🤖 What Agentic Even Means (And Why It’s Not Just AI)

“Agentic” sounds like one of those buzzwords, right?

But it’s not hype. It’s a shift in mindset — from apps that follow fixed rules to apps that act like helpers with a bit of autonomy.

🧠 Agent ≠ AI

An agentic app doesn’t have to be powered by AI.

At its core, it’s an app that can:

• Interpret intent from the user

• Decide what logic to run

• Pull that logic in real-time, not from a frozen list

• Act in the user’s best interest, even in new situations

If you’ve used tools like Copilot, Notion AI, or Raycast... you’ve seen agentic behavior in action.

☕ Back to Coffee

You used to give your app a list of drink options.

Now, a user can say:

“I want something warm, a little strong, but not bitter.”

And your app goes:
→ “Alright. Let’s build a new drink logic using X, Y, and Z…”

Even if it hasn’t brewed that drink before.

That’s agentic logic.

📦 It’s Not Just Prompts

This isn’t just about using LLMs. It’s about designing systems that:

• Accept broad input

• Resolve flexible logic

• Remain up-to-date without waiting for releases

Whether it’s a form builder, a finance tool, or a personal CRM — agentic thinking makes your app feel like it adapts, not just runs code.

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☕ Final Sip

Your app doesn’t have to stay frozen in time.

We’ve gone from hardcoded logic → to delegates → to systems that learn, adapt, and respond in real-time.

It’s not about replacing what works — it’s about expanding what’s possible.

And once you start thinking in agentic patterns, you won’t look at feature releases the same again.

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📢 What’s Next?

I’m diving deeper into agentic architecture — with real examples, tools, and how to start simple with C# and Blazor.

Subscribe to the blog. Follow the builds. Ask questions.

This isn’t just theory. I’m building it in public.

Let’s unfreeze the future — one smart app at a time.