The subject matter described herein includes methods, systems, and computer readable media for providing a thinking Diameter network architecture. A system for providing a thinking Diameter network architecture includes a network event listener for receiving information about network events and for providing a real time or predictive view of network conditions. The system further includes a policy directed software defined network (SDN) controller for, based on the real time or predictive view of network conditions, issuing SDN commands to route Internet protocol (IP) flows to needed network elements and to instruct dynamically configurable network elements to instantiate Diameter resource instances or to allocate hardware among existing Diameter resource instances.