Software I use daily and recommend

I am often asked about the tools I use to architect scalable test automation systems. Here is the software stack I rely on to deliver high-quality software in 2026.

Core Automation & Languages

  • Playwright

    E2E Architecture

    Playwright

    The undisputed king of modern web automation. Fast, reliable, and handles complex modern web apps.

  • Selenium / WebDriver

    Enterprise Migration

    Selenium / WebDriver

    Managing complex migrations from legacy Selenium suites to modern optimized architectures.

  • TypeScript

    Static Analysis

    TypeScript

    Enforcing strict type safety to eliminate entire classes of bugs before they reach production.

  • Java

    Backend Automation

    Java

    Building enterprise-grade, scalable test automation strategies for complex distributed systems.

  • C#

    .NET Ecosystem

    C#

    Designing high-performance test frameworks typically found in financial and enterprise environments.

API & Performance

  • K6

    Performance Engineering

    K6

    Shifting performance testing left. Simulating high-concurrency traffic in CI/CD to prevent regressions.

  • RestAssured

    API Contracts

    RestAssured

    Validating microservices reliability with fluent, solid Java-based API testing patterns.

  • Postman

    API Exploration

    Postman

    Rapid prototyping and documentation of API contracts for cross-team collaboration.

Infrastructure & DevOps

  • CI/CD Pipelines

    Pipeline Orchestration

    CI/CD Pipelines

    Orchestrating reliable pipelines (GitHub, Azure, GitLab). Ensuring every commit is effectively verified, built, and deployed.

  • Docker & Kubernetes

    Containerization

    Docker & Kubernetes

    Defining Infrastructure as Code to spin up ephemeral, consistent test environments on demand.

  • Grafana

    Observability

    Grafana

    Implementing observability to monitor production health and detect anomalies before users do.

AI & Industrial Innovation

  • Cursor

    AI-Native Dev

    Cursor

    Accelerating development velocity by leveraging AI-native workflows for code generation and refactoring.

  • Antigravity

    Agentic Systems

    Antigravity

    Pioneering the future of software development with autonomous agentic coding workflows.

  • VS Code / Visual Studio

    Integrated Environment

    VS Code / Visual Studio

    Optimizing the developer experience with a highly configured, extensible ecosystem.

  • MCPs & Skills

    Context Integration

    MCPs & Skills

    Integrating AI with industrial production context to solve complex, domain-specific challenges.

Compare the tools

I have used all three tools in production. Here is how they stack up on the metrics that matter most to QA teams.

Feature Playwright Selenium Cypress
Speed (parallel runs) Built-in, no config Requires Grid + nodes Business tier only
Browser support Chromium, Firefox, WebKit All major browsers Chromium, Firefox, WebKit
API testing Native Via REST Assured Limited
Mobile emulation Device presets + viewport Via Appium Viewport only
Flaky test retries Auto, configurable Manual code only Partial
Trace / debug Video, trace, screenshots Screenshots only Screenshots + video
Learning curve 1-2 weeks 4-6 weeks 1-2 weeks
Best for New projects, fast CI Legacy suites, large orgs Component testing

When to use what

Starting a new project

Playwright + TypeScript. You get auto-waiting, parallel execution, and native API testing from day one. Most teams see tests running in CI within 48 hours.

Maintaining a Selenium suite

Keep Selenium for stable legacy flows. Migrate flaky or slow tests to Playwright one by one. I have done this for 3 Fortune 500 teams without breaking existing pipelines.

Testing React components

Cypress works well for component testing inside Storybook. For end-to-end flows, Playwright is faster and handles multiple domains better.

Performance testing

K6 for load and stress. Playwright for user-journey timing and Core Web Vitals checks in CI. Together they catch slowdowns before users do.

CI/CD integration

GitHub Actions for open source and small teams. Azure DevOps for enterprise. Both support matrix builds across browsers and parallel shards.

AI-assisted testing

Cursor for writing test code faster. MCP servers for connecting AI agents to real browsers. This stack is what I use to build autonomous QA workflows.

Why this stack wins

10x

Faster test execution vs legacy Selenium suites after migration

48h

Average time to get first tests running in CI for new teams

300%

Coverage increase achieved for one healthcare client in 6 months