How AI Increases Tech Debt? 4 Ways IT Teams Can Prevent It

A new study by HFS Research and Unqork warns that artificial intelligence, while promising major cost and productivity gains, may also accelerate technical debt inside large organizations. The survey of 123 IT leaders found that 43% fear AI will create new tech debt. Even as 84% expect AI to cut operational costs and 80% anticipate productivity benefits. The concern reflects mounting anxiety over security vulnerabilities, legacy integration challenges, and the opaque “black-box” nature of modern AI systems. 

Technical debt occurs when teams rely on quick fixes instead of long-term engineering approaches — a problem now compounded by AI-assisted development tools that generate new code faster than organizations can properly govern. Unqork CEO Gary Hoberman notes that even highly efficient AI-generated code may run on outdated runtimes or unsupported open-source libraries, embedding decades-old vulnerabilities into modern systems. One client described in the report has spent months just updating its Java Virtual Machine, only to face new version updates immediately afterward — a cycle Hoberman calls “inherited tech debt.” 

As AI scales across enterprise stacks, experts warn that existing maintenance burdens could worsen due to: 

• Security risks (59%) 

• Legacy system complexity (50%) 

• Loss of visibility into AI-generated changes (42%) 

To prevent AI from deepening tech debt, researchers recommend four key strategies: 

1. Restrict uncontrolled AI-generated code lacking traceability, rollback paths, or integration guardrails. 
2. Shift toward modern, productized architectures that emphasize reuse and governance. 
3. Drive long-term software planning by tying architecture modernization directly to business outcomes. 
4. Modernize legacy systems to ensure AI isn’t layered atop unstable foundations. 

The report concludes that without deeper architectural reform, AI will not eliminate tech debt — it will accelerate it. 

 

Source: 

https://www.zdnet.com/article/how-ai-can-magnify-your-tech-debt-and-4-ways-to-avoid-that-trap/