diff --git a/README.md b/README.md
index bcc63e27..12abba24 100644
--- a/README.md
+++ b/README.md
@@ -7,6 +7,22 @@ libratbag is a configuration library for gaming mice. It provides a generic
 way to access the various features exposed by these mice and abstracts away
 hardware-specific and kernel-specific quirks.
 
+Architecture
+------------
+
+libratbag has two main components, the front-end API and wrapper code, and
+the back-end HW-specific drivers:
+
+   +-----+    +-----+    +-----------+    +----------+
+   | app | -> | API | -> | hw-driver | -> | protocol | -> device
+   +-----+    +-----+    +-----------+    +----------+
+
+The API layer is HW agnostic. Depend on the HW, the protocol may be part of
+the driver implementation (e.g. etekcity) or a separate set of files
+(HID++). Where the protocol is separate, the whole known protocol should be
+implemented. The HW driver then only accesses the bits required for
+libratbag. This allows us to optionally export the protocol as separate
+library in the future, if other projects require it.
 
 License
 -------