What is the main advantage of event-driven architecture?

The main advantage of event-driven architecture lies in its ability to react in real time to events and changes in data. This architecture is designed around the production, detection, consumption of, and reaction to events. When an event occurs, those components that are subscribed to that event can take action, thereby enabling immediate responses to changing conditions within the system.

This real-time capability is particularly beneficial in applications where timely data processing is critical, such as financial services, e-commerce transactions, or monitoring systems. The architecture enables systems to be responsive and flexible, adapting to new data and events as they occur rather than relying on a predetermined schedule or batch process.

In contrast, synchronous data processing would involve components waiting for responses before proceeding, which can lead to delays and inefficiencies. Batch processing enhances performance for large volumes of data but lacks the immediacy offered by event-driven systems. While event-driven architecture can facilitate integration with legacy systems by acting as a bridge through event detection, simplification of legacy systems is not its primary advantage; rather, the focus is on real-time event handling and responsiveness.