Malleable Software

Designing and Programming Malleable Software - Tchernavskij (2019) | Malleable Software in the Age of LLMs - Litt (2023) | Malleable Software - Ink & Switch (2025) | Webstrates - Klokmose et al. (2015)

Malleable Software is the concept that users should be able to reshape their software tools at runtime, not wait for vendor updates. Coined by Philip Tchernavskij (doctoral thesis, Paris-Saclay, 2019), who proposed composable UI design patterns (“entanglers”). Geoffrey Litt (Ink & Switch) extended the concept in 2023: LLMs are the missing enabling technology, letting non-programmers create personal tools in natural language. The 2025 Ink & Switch manifesto synthesizes the vision: local-first computing combined with AI restores user agency.