There’s something poetic about attending a conference focused on speed, simplicity, and intelligent workflows in a city known for its altitude-induced confusion and notoriously weird airport. Appian World 2025 landed in my hometown of Denver this year, and, aside from the tech, a big highlight for me was getting to explore the brand-new Gaylord Rockies Resort since you never do those kinds of things when you live down the street. It’s the kind of venue that makes you forget you’re technically still near an airport, which is saying a lot when that airport is Denver International and half your hallway conversations revolve around whether the Illuminati designed it.
The only downside? A flight cancellation on the way out thanks to a Dallas layover, solidifying Dallas as my least favorite connection city. But delays aside, Appian World 2025 was full of momentum. From high-energy keynotes to deeply technical breakouts and some incredibly honest hallway chats, the event made one thing clear: Appian isn’t late with AI, it’s doing AI just right by embedding it into the heart of how enterprise software gets built, governed, and deployed.
So what did I learn at Appian World 2025?
DevSecOps Is Real and It’s Low-Code Now
One of the most meaningful shifts at this year’s event was how naturally DevSecOps conversations were woven into application development workflows. In past years, security and compliance were often afterthoughts or blockers. But now, they’re being addressed in the flow of low-code development, especially with AI embedded into testing, modeling, and release.
In my meeting with Mark Talbot, he broke down how AI Document Center simplifies document processing for non-technical users while still meeting regulatory standards. The platform’s built-in governance and unit testing even extends to Composer, ensuring developers are equipped to build right the first time. Jacob Rank took that even further, sharing how Appian’s APIs work natively with Jenkins and Bitbucket and how AI integrates into secure pipelines without adding risk.
The real headline here? Low-code and DevSecOps are no longer mutually exclusive. Appian is helping teams automate securely at scale with less overhead and more confidence.
Modernization Is Now Practical
Modernization isn’t about rewriting everything from scratch. It’s about making smarter use of what you already have, eliminating friction, and surfacing data and processes that are ready for orchestration. That message came through loud and clear in both breakout sessions and executive conversations.
In my discussion with Will Oswald and Ryan Cox from Acclaim Autism, the story of moving from a failed Java build to a fully orchestrated Appian platform was a masterclass in how low-code platforms can help purpose-driven organizations deliver meaningful care faster. Likewise, the session with Tricon and AWS showed how AI can extend customer experience without requiring massive replatforming. Just smart process design, great partners, and tools that work.
One of the more technical sessions—Rethinking Integration—also reinforced that data fabric, API orchestration, and automation services are the real building blocks of modernization. Appian’s new Autoscale engine, Kafka beta integration, and deeper RPA support make clear that modernization is no longer a moonshot. It’s a roadmap.
Choosing the Right Partner Is the Most Strategic Decision You’ll Make
Every enterprise is trying to balance agility with accountability. You want to innovate fast but not at the cost of security, compliance, or long-term sustainability. That’s why the “right platform” conversation is really a “right partner” conversation.
Hitachi’s CIO, Bala Krishnapillai, said it best in our conversation: Appian earned their trust by showing up honestly, helping build process-first applications that don’t require heavy IT lift, and admitting when something wasn’t in their wheelhouse. That transparency matters. Especially when you’re managing complex architectures with messy data, cross-border compliance, and high stakeholder expectations.
Across the board, speakers and customers agreed: business-first automation requires a platform that helps you deliver quickly, securely, and collaboratively. Appian’s keynote drove home that the future isn’t just about embedding AI, it’s about doing it with governance, visibility, and business outcomes as the north star.
See You Next Year in Florida
Appian World 2025 was thoughtful, energetic, and deeply relevant to the challenges enterprise developers and digital leaders are facing today. The combination of live demos, real customer stories, and meaningful product reveals made it easy to connect the dots between platform capabilities and day-to-day value.
And while the conference may be over, the momentum is clearly just getting started. With everything from agentic AI strategies to AI Composer’s enterprise-ready tooling, Appian continues to be a platform that meets developers where they are and helps them go further, faster.
See you next year in Florida. Hopefully with fewer layovers in Dallas.
