diff --git a/backend/src/index.js b/backend/src/index.js
index f096d74..e6023c6 100644
--- a/backend/src/index.js
+++ b/backend/src/index.js
@@ -5,8 +5,10 @@ import dotenv from 'dotenv';
 import { createServer } from 'http';
 import { WebSocketServer } from 'ws';
 import rateLimit from 'express-rate-limit';
+import { parse } from 'url';
 import db from './db/schema.js';
 import debateRoutes from './routes/debate.js';
+import orchestrator from './services/orchestrator.js';
 
 dotenv.config();
 
@@ -32,15 +34,44 @@ const limiter = rateLimit({
 app.use('/api', limiter);
 
 // WebSocket connection handling
-wss.on('connection', (ws) => {
-  console.log('New WebSocket connection established');
+wss.on('connection', (ws, req) => {
+  const { query } = parse(req.url, true);
+  const debateId = query.debateId ? parseInt(query.debateId) : null;
+
+  console.log('New WebSocket connection established', debateId ? `for debate ${debateId}` : '');
+
+  if (debateId) {
+    orchestrator.registerWSClient(debateId, ws);
+
+    ws.send(JSON.stringify({
+      type: 'connected',
+      debateId,
+      message: 'Connected to debate updates'
+    }));
+  }
 
   ws.on('message', (message) => {
-    console.log('Received:', message.toString());
-    // Handle incoming messages
+    try {
+      const data = JSON.parse(message.toString());
+      console.log('Received:', data);
+
+      // Handle subscribe to debate
+      if (data.type === 'subscribe' && data.debateId) {
+        orchestrator.registerWSClient(parseInt(data.debateId), ws);
+        ws.send(JSON.stringify({
+          type: 'subscribed',
+          debateId: data.debateId
+        }));
+      }
+    } catch (error) {
+      console.error('WebSocket message error:', error);
+    }
   });
 
   ws.on('close', () => {
+    if (debateId) {
+      orchestrator.unregisterWSClient(debateId, ws);
+    }
     console.log('WebSocket connection closed');
   });
 });
diff --git a/backend/src/routes/debate.js b/backend/src/routes/debate.js
index 098bdc1..7555db3 100644
--- a/backend/src/routes/debate.js
+++ b/backend/src/routes/debate.js
@@ -5,7 +5,7 @@ const router = express.Router();
 
 /**
  * POST /api/debate
- * Create a new debate
+ * Create a new debate and start AI discussion
  */
 router.post('/', async (req, res) => {
   try {
@@ -18,12 +18,19 @@ router.post('/', async (req, res) => {
     const debateId = orchestrator.createDebate(prompt);
     const agents = orchestrator.selectAgents(prompt);
 
+    // Send immediate response
     res.json({
       debateId,
       prompt,
       agents,
       status: 'ongoing'
     });
+
+    // Start debate asynchronously (don't wait for response)
+    orchestrator.startDebate(debateId, agents).catch(error => {
+      console.error('Debate failed:', error);
+    });
+
   } catch (error) {
     console.error('Error creating debate:', error);
     res.status(500).json({ error: 'Failed to create debate' });
diff --git a/backend/src/services/mistralClient.js b/backend/src/services/mistralClient.js
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..e95aefa
--- /dev/null
+++ b/backend/src/services/mistralClient.js
@@ -0,0 +1,168 @@
+import dotenv from 'dotenv';
+
+dotenv.config();
+
+const MISTRAL_API_KEY = process.env.MISTRAL_API_KEY;
+const MISTRAL_API_URL = 'https://api.mistral.ai/v1/chat/completions';
+
+/**
+ * Agent role system prompts
+ */
+const AGENT_PROMPTS = {
+  architect: `You are a Software Architect AI. Your role is to:
+- Design high-level system architecture
+- Make technology stack decisions
+- Define project structure and modules
+- Consider scalability and maintainability
+- Provide clear technical justifications
+
+Output format: JSON with fields {proposal, justification, confidence (0-1), dependencies: []}`,
+
+  backend_engineer: `You are a Backend Engineer AI. Your role is to:
+- Design API endpoints and data models
+- Suggest backend technologies and frameworks
+- Plan database schema
+- Consider performance and security
+- Provide implementation guidelines
+
+Output format: JSON with fields {proposal, justification, confidence (0-1), dependencies: []}`,
+
+  frontend_engineer: `You are a Frontend Engineer AI. Your role is to:
+- Design user interface structure
+- Suggest frontend frameworks and libraries
+- Plan component architecture
+- Consider UX and performance
+- Provide implementation guidelines
+
+Output format: JSON with fields {proposal, justification, confidence (0-1), dependencies: []}`,
+
+  designer: `You are a UI/UX Designer AI. Your role is to:
+- Design user experience flows
+- Suggest UI patterns and layouts
+- Consider accessibility and usability
+- Provide visual design guidelines
+- Think about user interactions
+
+Output format: JSON with fields {proposal, justification, confidence (0-1), dependencies: []}`
+};
+
+/**
+ * Call Mistral AI API
+ */
+async function callMistralAPI(messages, options = {}) {
+  const response = await fetch(MISTRAL_API_URL, {
+    method: 'POST',
+    headers: {
+      'Content-Type': 'application/json',
+      'Authorization': `Bearer ${MISTRAL_API_KEY}`
+    },
+    body: JSON.stringify({
+      model: options.model || 'mistral-small-latest',
+      messages,
+      temperature: options.temperature || 0.7,
+      max_tokens: options.maxTokens || 2048,
+      ...options
+    })
+  });
+
+  if (!response.ok) {
+    const error = await response.text();
+    throw new Error(`Mistral API error: ${error}`);
+  }
+
+  return await response.json();
+}
+
+/**
+ * Generate agent response for a debate
+ */
+export async function generateAgentResponse(agentRole, prompt, context = []) {
+  const systemPrompt = AGENT_PROMPTS[agentRole] || AGENT_PROMPTS.architect;
+
+  const messages = [
+    { role: 'system', content: systemPrompt },
+    { role: 'user', content: `Project prompt: ${prompt}` }
+  ];
+
+  // Add context from previous responses
+  if (context.length > 0) {
+    const contextStr = context
+      .slice(-3) // Last 3 responses to avoid token bloat
+      .map(r => `${r.agent_role}: ${JSON.stringify(r.content)}`)
+      .join('\n');
+
+    messages.push({
+      role: 'user',
+      content: `Previous discussion:\n${contextStr}\n\nProvide your analysis and proposal.`
+    });
+  }
+
+  try {
+    const result = await callMistralAPI(messages, {
+      temperature: 0.7,
+      maxTokens: 2048
+    });
+
+    const content = result.choices[0].message.content;
+
+    // Try to parse as JSON
+    let parsedContent;
+    try {
+      // Extract JSON from markdown code blocks if present
+      const jsonMatch = content.match(/```(?:json)?\s*(\{[\s\S]*\})\s*```/) ||
+                       content.match(/(\{[\s\S]*\})/);
+
+      if (jsonMatch) {
+        parsedContent = JSON.parse(jsonMatch[1]);
+      } else {
+        parsedContent = JSON.parse(content);
+      }
+    } catch (parseError) {
+      // If not valid JSON, create structured response
+      parsedContent = {
+        proposal: content,
+        justification: `Analysis from ${agentRole}`,
+        confidence: 0.7,
+        dependencies: []
+      };
+    }
+
+    // Ensure required fields
+    return {
+      proposal: parsedContent.proposal || content,
+      justification: parsedContent.justification || '',
+      confidence: parsedContent.confidence || 0.7,
+      dependencies: parsedContent.dependencies || [],
+      mermaid: parsedContent.mermaid || null
+    };
+
+  } catch (error) {
+    console.error(`Error generating response for ${agentRole}:`, error);
+
+    // Return mock response on error
+    return {
+      proposal: `Error generating response: ${error.message}`,
+      justification: 'Failed to get AI response',
+      confidence: 0.5,
+      dependencies: [],
+      error: true
+    };
+  }
+}
+
+/**
+ * Generate responses from multiple agents in parallel
+ */
+export async function generateMultiAgentResponses(agents, prompt, context = []) {
+  const promises = agents.map(agent =>
+    generateAgentResponse(agent, prompt, context)
+      .then(response => ({ agent, response }))
+  );
+
+  return await Promise.all(promises);
+}
+
+export default {
+  generateAgentResponse,
+  generateMultiAgentResponses
+};
diff --git a/backend/src/services/orchestrator.js b/backend/src/services/orchestrator.js
index 82b59e0..8a35aaa 100644
--- a/backend/src/services/orchestrator.js
+++ b/backend/src/services/orchestrator.js
@@ -1,8 +1,43 @@
 import db from '../db/schema.js';
+import { generateMultiAgentResponses } from './mistralClient.js';
 
 class Orchestrator {
   constructor() {
     this.activeDebates = new Map();
+    this.wsClients = new Map(); // debateId -> Set of WebSocket clients
+  }
+
+  /**
+   * Register WebSocket client for a debate
+   */
+  registerWSClient(debateId, ws) {
+    if (!this.wsClients.has(debateId)) {
+      this.wsClients.set(debateId, new Set());
+    }
+    this.wsClients.get(debateId).add(ws);
+  }
+
+  /**
+   * Unregister WebSocket client
+   */
+  unregisterWSClient(debateId, ws) {
+    if (this.wsClients.has(debateId)) {
+      this.wsClients.get(debateId).delete(ws);
+    }
+  }
+
+  /**
+   * Broadcast message to all clients watching a debate
+   */
+  broadcast(debateId, message) {
+    if (this.wsClients.has(debateId)) {
+      const data = JSON.stringify(message);
+      this.wsClients.get(debateId).forEach(ws => {
+        if (ws.readyState === 1) { // OPEN
+          ws.send(data);
+        }
+      });
+    }
   }
 
   /**
@@ -102,6 +137,100 @@ class Orchestrator {
 
     return agents;
   }
+
+  /**
+   * Start AI debate - trigger agents and collect responses
+   */
+  async startDebate(debateId, agents) {
+    try {
+      const debate = this.getDebate(debateId);
+      if (!debate) {
+        throw new Error('Debate not found');
+      }
+
+      const prompt = debate.prompt;
+      const context = this.getDebateResponses(debateId);
+
+      // Broadcast debate start
+      this.broadcast(debateId, {
+        type: 'debate_start',
+        debateId,
+        agents,
+        message: 'AI agents are analyzing your project...'
+      });
+
+      // Generate responses from all agents in parallel
+      const agentResponses = await generateMultiAgentResponses(agents, prompt, context);
+
+      // Store responses and broadcast each one
+      for (const { agent, response } of agentResponses) {
+        const responseId = this.addResponse(debateId, agent, response);
+
+        this.broadcast(debateId, {
+          type: 'agent_response',
+          debateId,
+          responseId,
+          agent,
+          response
+        });
+      }
+
+      // Calculate consensus
+      const consensus = this.calculateConsensus(agentResponses);
+
+      // Complete debate
+      this.completeDebate(debateId);
+
+      this.broadcast(debateId, {
+        type: 'debate_complete',
+        debateId,
+        consensus,
+        message: 'Debate completed successfully'
+      });
+
+      return {
+        responses: agentResponses,
+        consensus
+      };
+
+    } catch (error) {
+      console.error('Error in debate:', error);
+      this.failDebate(debateId);
+
+      this.broadcast(debateId, {
+        type: 'debate_error',
+        debateId,
+        error: error.message
+      });
+
+      throw error;
+    }
+  }
+
+  /**
+   * Calculate consensus from agent responses
+   */
+  calculateConsensus(agentResponses) {
+    const proposals = agentResponses.map(({ agent, response }) => ({
+      agent,
+      proposal: response.proposal,
+      confidence: response.confidence || 0.5
+    }));
+
+    // Weight by confidence and architect gets 1.5x weight
+    const totalWeight = proposals.reduce((sum, p) => {
+      const weight = p.agent === 'architect' ? 1.5 : 1.0;
+      return sum + (p.confidence * weight);
+    }, 0);
+
+    const avgConfidence = totalWeight / proposals.length;
+
+    return {
+      proposals,
+      averageConfidence: avgConfidence,
+      status: avgConfidence >= 0.6 ? 'consensus_reached' : 'needs_discussion'
+    };
+  }
 }
 
 export default new Orchestrator();
diff --git a/frontend/.env.example b/frontend/.env.example
index 5317fce..27e71be 100644
--- a/frontend/.env.example
+++ b/frontend/.env.example
@@ -1 +1,2 @@
 VITE_API_URL=http://localhost:3000
+VITE_WS_URL=ws://localhost:3000
diff --git a/frontend/src/components/DebateThread.vue b/frontend/src/components/DebateThread.vue
index 616355a..077bbe1 100644
--- a/frontend/src/components/DebateThread.vue
+++ b/frontend/src/components/DebateThread.vue
@@ -2,7 +2,7 @@
   <div class="debate-thread">
     <div class="debate-header">
       <h2>Debate #{{ debate.debateId }}</h2>
-      <span class="status" :class="debate.status">{{ debate.status }}</span>
+      <span class="status" :class="currentStatus">{{ currentStatus }}</span>
     </div>
 
     <div class="prompt-display">
@@ -24,31 +24,69 @@
       </div>
     </div>
 
-    <div class="responses" v-if="debate.responses && debate.responses.length > 0">
+    <!-- Status messages -->
+    <div v-if="statusMessage" class="status-message">
+      {{ statusMessage }}
+    </div>
+
+    <!-- Responses -->
+    <div class="responses" v-if="allResponses.length > 0">
       <h3>Debate Responses</h3>
       <div
-        v-for="(response, index) in debate.responses"
+        v-for="(response, index) in allResponses"
         :key="index"
         class="response-card"
-        :class="getAgentClass(response.agent_role)"
+        :class="getAgentClass(response.agent || response.agent_role)"
       >
         <div class="response-header">
-          <span class="agent-name">{{ formatAgentName(response.agent_role) }}</span>
+          <span class="agent-name">{{ formatAgentName(response.agent || response.agent_role) }}</span>
           <span class="timestamp">{{ formatTimestamp(response.timestamp) }}</span>
         </div>
         <div class="response-content">
-          {{ typeof response.content === 'string' ? response.content : JSON.stringify(response.content, null, 2) }}
+          <div v-if="response.response">
+            <p><strong>Proposal:</strong> {{ response.response.proposal }}</p>
+            <p v-if="response.response.justification"><strong>Justification:</strong> {{ response.response.justification }}</p>
+            <p v-if="response.response.confidence"><strong>Confidence:</strong> {{ Math.round(response.response.confidence * 100) }}%</p>
+            <div v-if="response.response.dependencies && response.response.dependencies.length">
+              <strong>Dependencies:</strong>
+              <ul>
+                <li v-for="dep in response.response.dependencies" :key="dep">{{ dep }}</li>
+              </ul>
+            </div>
+
+            <!-- Mermaid diagram rendering -->
+            <div v-if="response.response.mermaid" class="mermaid-container" :ref="`mermaid-${index}`">
+              <pre class="mermaid">{{ response.response.mermaid.code || response.response.mermaid }}</pre>
+            </div>
+          </div>
+          <div v-else>
+            {{ typeof response.content === 'string' ? response.content : JSON.stringify(response.content, null, 2) }}
+          </div>
         </div>
       </div>
     </div>
 
     <div v-else class="no-responses">
-      <p>Waiting for AI agents to respond...</p>
+      <div class="loading-spinner"></div>
+      <p>AI agents are analyzing your project...</p>
+    </div>
+
+    <!-- Consensus section -->
+    <div v-if="consensus" class="consensus-section">
+      <h3>Consensus</h3>
+      <div class="consensus-card">
+        <p><strong>Status:</strong> {{ consensus.status }}</p>
+        <p><strong>Average Confidence:</strong> {{ Math.round(consensus.averageConfidence * 100) }}%</p>
+      </div>
     </div>
   </div>
 </template>
 
 <script setup>
+import { ref, computed, watch, onMounted, nextTick } from 'vue'
+import { useWebSocket } from '../composables/useWebSocket'
+import mermaid from 'mermaid'
+
 const props = defineProps({
   debate: {
     type: Object,
@@ -56,7 +94,61 @@ const props = defineProps({
   }
 })
 
+const allResponses = ref([...(props.debate.responses || [])])
+const currentStatus = ref(props.debate.status || 'ongoing')
+const statusMessage = ref(null)
+const consensus = ref(null)
+
+// Initialize Mermaid
+mermaid.initialize({
+  startOnLoad: true,
+  theme: 'default',
+  securityLevel: 'loose'
+})
+
+// WebSocket setup
+const { messages, connect } = useWebSocket(props.debate.debateId)
+
+onMounted(() => {
+  connect()
+  renderMermaidDiagrams()
+})
+
+// Watch for WebSocket messages
+watch(messages, (newMessages) => {
+  const latestMessage = newMessages[newMessages.length - 1]
+  if (!latestMessage) return
+
+  switch (latestMessage.type) {
+    case 'debate_start':
+      statusMessage.value = latestMessage.message
+      currentStatus.value = 'ongoing'
+      break
+
+    case 'agent_response':
+      allResponses.value.push({
+        agent: latestMessage.agent,
+        response: latestMessage.response,
+        timestamp: new Date().toISOString()
+      })
+      nextTick(() => renderMermaidDiagrams())
+      break
+
+    case 'debate_complete':
+      currentStatus.value = 'completed'
+      statusMessage.value = latestMessage.message
+      consensus.value = latestMessage.consensus
+      break
+
+    case 'debate_error':
+      currentStatus.value = 'failed'
+      statusMessage.value = `Error: ${latestMessage.error}`
+      break
+  }
+}, { deep: true })
+
 function formatAgentName(agent) {
+  if (!agent) return ''
   return agent
     .split('_')
     .map(word => word.charAt(0).toUpperCase() + word.slice(1))
@@ -78,6 +170,17 @@ function formatTimestamp(timestamp) {
   const date = new Date(timestamp)
   return date.toLocaleTimeString()
 }
+
+async function renderMermaidDiagrams() {
+  await nextTick()
+  try {
+    await mermaid.run({
+      querySelector: '.mermaid'
+    })
+  } catch (error) {
+    console.error('Mermaid rendering error:', error)
+  }
+}
 </script>
 
 <style scoped>
@@ -167,6 +270,15 @@ function formatTimestamp(timestamp) {
   background-color: #95a5a6;
 }
 
+.status-message {
+  background-color: #e8f4f8;
+  padding: 1rem;
+  border-radius: 8px;
+  margin-bottom: 1.5rem;
+  color: #2c3e50;
+  text-align: center;
+}
+
 .responses h3 {
   margin-bottom: 1rem;
 }
@@ -198,7 +310,22 @@ function formatTimestamp(timestamp) {
 
 .response-content {
   line-height: 1.6;
-  white-space: pre-wrap;
+}
+
+.response-content p {
+  margin-bottom: 0.5rem;
+}
+
+.response-content ul {
+  margin-left: 1.5rem;
+}
+
+.mermaid-container {
+  margin-top: 1rem;
+  padding: 1rem;
+  background-color: #f8f9fa;
+  border-radius: 8px;
+  overflow-x: auto;
 }
 
 .no-responses {
@@ -206,4 +333,35 @@ function formatTimestamp(timestamp) {
   padding: 3rem;
   color: #7f8c8d;
 }
+
+.loading-spinner {
+  margin: 0 auto 1rem;
+  width: 40px;
+  height: 40px;
+  border: 4px solid #e0e0e0;
+  border-top-color: #667eea;
+  border-radius: 50%;
+  animation: spin 1s linear infinite;
+}
+
+@keyframes spin {
+  to { transform: rotate(360deg); }
+}
+
+.consensus-section {
+  margin-top: 2rem;
+  padding-top: 2rem;
+  border-top: 2px solid #e0e0e0;
+}
+
+.consensus-card {
+  background-color: #e8f5e9;
+  padding: 1.5rem;
+  border-radius: 8px;
+  border-left: 4px solid #2ecc71;
+}
+
+.consensus-card p {
+  margin: 0.5rem 0;
+}
 </style>
diff --git a/frontend/src/composables/useWebSocket.js b/frontend/src/composables/useWebSocket.js
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..5252bf8
--- /dev/null
+++ b/frontend/src/composables/useWebSocket.js
@@ -0,0 +1,71 @@
+import { ref, onUnmounted } from 'vue'
+
+export function useWebSocket(debateId) {
+  const ws = ref(null)
+  const connected = ref(false)
+  const messages = ref([])
+
+  const WS_URL = import.meta.env.VITE_WS_URL || 'ws://localhost:3000'
+
+  function connect() {
+    const url = debateId ? `${WS_URL}?debateId=${debateId}` : WS_URL
+    ws.value = new WebSocket(url)
+
+    ws.value.onopen = () => {
+      connected.value = true
+      console.log('WebSocket connected')
+    }
+
+    ws.value.onmessage = (event) => {
+      try {
+        const data = JSON.parse(event.data)
+        messages.value.push(data)
+      } catch (error) {
+        console.error('WebSocket message parse error:', error)
+      }
+    }
+
+    ws.value.onerror = (error) => {
+      console.error('WebSocket error:', error)
+    }
+
+    ws.value.onclose = () => {
+      connected.value = false
+      console.log('WebSocket disconnected')
+    }
+  }
+
+  function disconnect() {
+    if (ws.value) {
+      ws.value.close()
+      ws.value = null
+    }
+  }
+
+  function send(data) {
+    if (ws.value && connected.value) {
+      ws.value.send(JSON.stringify(data))
+    }
+  }
+
+  function subscribe(newDebateId) {
+    send({
+      type: 'subscribe',
+      debateId: newDebateId
+    })
+  }
+
+  onUnmounted(() => {
+    disconnect()
+  })
+
+  return {
+    ws,
+    connected,
+    messages,
+    connect,
+    disconnect,
+    send,
+    subscribe
+  }
+}