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Spec-Driven Development Is Not Waterfall — Here Is Why the Debate Misses the Point

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A growing debate in software development circles questions whether writing specifications makes a process 'waterfall,' drawing commentary from figures like Martin Fowler and Kent Beck and nearly 200 comments on Hacker News. The core distinction between waterfall and agile actually comes down to two factors: batch size and phase gates, not whether a specification is written. A spec written iteratively and collaboratively is fully compatible with agile principles, as the document itself does not determine how work is structured or handed off. The rise of AI coding tools has intensified the debate because they make it tempting to hand large, loosely defined tasks to agents, which risks reintroducing big-batch thinking. The recommended response is decomposition — breaking work into small, intentional units — rather than abandoning written specifications altogether.

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Spec-Driven Development Is Not Waterfall — Here Is Why the Debate Misses the Point · ShortSingh