Software Sucks Now

Modern software quality has declined significantly, but not for the reasons commonly cited. The real culprit is codebase age and complexity: platforms like iOS, Windows, YouTube, and Twitter have been accumulating code for over a decade without fundamental rewrites. As software grows older and larger, it becomes exponentially harder to maintain, regardless of programming language, AI usage, or framework choice. The industry has consolidated around a small set of aging platforms (iOS/Android, Windows/macOS, Gmail, YouTube) that now carry massive technical debt. Meanwhile, smaller open-source projects maintained by passionate individuals (like Ghostty, Lossless Cut, and Helium) remain stable because they're newer, smaller, and built with focused intent. The solution isn't better tooling or banning AI—it's diversifying the software ecosystem and supporting independent developers building fresh alternatives.