The implied cost of future reworking required when choosing quick, limited solutions instead of better approaches that would take longer. Like financial debt, it accumulates 'interest' over time as the codebase becomes harder to modify.
Coined by Ward Cunningham in 1992, drawing an analogy to financial debt. Cunningham used this metaphor to help business stakeholders understand that taking shortcuts in code (like borrowing money) provides immediate benefits but creates ongoing costs that compound over time if not addressed.
Technical debt is like using duct tape to fix your car - it gets you moving quickly, but eventually you'll spend more time and money on repairs than if you'd fixed it properly the first time! Companies with high technical debt can become so slow to add features that startups with cleaner code can outpace them despite having smaller teams.
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