From Technical Debt to Cognitive and Intent Debt

Key Points

• This work aims to redefine software health by exploring the concepts of cognitive and intent debt in the context of artificial intelligence.
• Analyzed current literature on technical debt and its implications for software health.
• Developed a conceptual framework encompassing cognitive and intent debt.
• Investigated case studies demonstrating the practical effects of these forms of debt in AI systems.
• Identified clear distinctions between technical, cognitive, and intent debt.
• Showed that cognitive and intent debt significantly impact AI system performance.
• Proposed actionable strategies for mitigating these forms of debt in software development.