Why Software Maintenance Is Essential in a World of AI and Rapid Technological Change

One often underestimated aspect of software development projects is the maintenance phase. Yet a digital product is rarely ever truly finished. Mobile apps, web platforms, and APIs must continuously evolve to remain secure, performant, and compatible with their technological environment.

In a context where technologies evolve rapidly—cloud, cybersecurity, artificial intelligence, and new operating system versions—maintenance becomes a strategic tool to ensure the longevity of a digital product.

In this article, we break down why—and how—to structure an effective maintenance plan.

A Bit of Philosophy

You sometimes hear the expression “code rots,” drawing a parallel with physical materials.

At Thirdbridge, we’ve never fully subscribed to that comparison.

Source code is a set of deterministic instructions: executed under the same conditions, it will produce the same result today, tomorrow, or in 50 years. Unlike steel that oxidizes, code does not degrade over time.

What changes, however, is the world around it.

Today, several factors constantly reshape the technological environment of a digital product:

• operating systems evolve rapidly

• cybersecurity standards become more stringent

• cloud infrastructures transform

• artificial intelligence is increasingly integrated into digital products

Take the example of a security vulnerability. It doesn’t appear because the code has degraded. In many cases, the vulnerability existed from day one. What changes is our knowledge of cybersecurity, which evolves and allows us to uncover previously unknown flaws.

The code remains the same, but the ecosystem in which it operates is constantly changing.

The Role of a Maintenance Plan

A software maintenance plan is primarily about ensuring that a product continues to function effectively within an evolving technological environment.

Most digital projects must deal with three realities: the evolution of underlying technologies, changes imposed by external factors, and adjustments related to the product’s own evolution. Together, these forces mean that a digital product will always require some level of ongoing maintenance.

Evolving Technologies and Dependencies

Most modern applications rely on a constantly evolving technology stack. A mobile app depends on Android or iOS SDKs, while a web server may rely on environments like Node.js or Python, along with numerous open-source libraries.

Keeping these components up to date is essential for two key reasons: security and development velocity.

From a security perspective, vulnerabilities in frameworks and libraries are common. Updating versions allows teams to quickly patch these issues and reduce risks for users and data.

Maintenance also plays a critical role in a product’s ability to evolve. When a project goes unmaintained for years, developers must work with outdated or incompatible technologies. New features become harder to implement, and development cycles slow down.

External Factors

Some maintenance efforts are triggered by external factors beyond an organization’s control.

Technology providers regularly update their platforms and requirements. App stores such as Apple’s App Store and Google Play periodically require apps to be built with the latest SDK versions. Cloud providers also adjust their support policies and pricing models.

At Thirdbridge, we regularly encounter situations like these. For example:

• AWS EKS charges approximately $400 USD per month when the Kubernetes version used is no longer supported

• Apple requires apps to be built with recent iOS SDK versions

• Law 25 in Quebec has required many organizations to update their privacy policies and consent mechanisms

These adjustments are now an integral part of a digital product’s lifecycle.

Internal Factors

Maintenance can also stem from internal needs tied to the natural evolution of a product.

Over time, organizations often want to make incremental improvements to their platforms. This may include visual updates to a website, content updates in a mobile app, or improvements to certain technical configurations.

Today, many companies also use maintenance cycles to gradually integrate new artificial intelligence features. Whether it’s automating processes, analyzing data, or enhancing the user experience, these evolutions are often built on top of existing products.

The Thirdbridge Maintenance Model

At Thirdbridge, our maintenance plan takes the form of a non-expiring annual bank of hours.

This approach offers strong flexibility. Hours can be used for technology updates, security fixes, or product improvements. Because they don’t expire, they also help absorb fluctuations in needs from one year to the next.

If some hours remain unused, they can be applied as credit toward future development projects.

The goal is simple: to provide peace of mind—both technically and financially.

The Importance of Return on Investment

A maintenance plan should not be seen as an opportunity to systematically adopt every new trending technology.

Each intervention must be evaluated based on product strategy, real organizational needs, and potential return on investment.

For example, React recently announced the official deprecation of Create React App. Many existing projects were built using this technology. However, in contexts where the platform is stable and few new features are planned, a full migration may not always be a priority.

What matters is making informed, strategic technology decisions.

Conclusion

A digital product is rarely ever truly finished. In a constantly evolving technological environment, inaction can quickly lead to:

• Security vulnerabilities

• Reduced development velocity

• Accumulating technical debt

Implementing a structured maintenance plan is therefore essential to ensure the longevity of a digital product.

With its non-expiring bank-of-hours approach, Thirdbridge offers clients a flexible solution to keep their platforms up to date while maintaining financial predictability.

Beyond the code, our mission remains the same: to deliver the best possible experience in building and evolving digital products.