LLMs extract structured data from unstructured input. Rules decide what to do with it. A typed contract between the two layers makes the system testable, auditable, and reproducible.
Distributed workflows can't rely on global transactions. AI agents make this worse — they act fast, across many systems, with no built-in undo. The Saga pattern offers design principles that apply.
Intrinsic vs. post-hoc explainability is determined at design time. EU AI Act Article 86, GDPR, and CJEU rulings are making this an engineering constraint, not a policy discussion.
The LLM decides everything or the LLM extracts and rules decide. Two architectures, different audit, compliance, and failure recovery outcomes.
