OSS.fund Newsletter • 56 implied HN points • 26 Feb 26
- AI won’t magically flip a bank’s spend from run to change because banks are tightly governed and face real costs like compliance, dual-run tax, and mandatory testing that prevent a quick switch. These constraints mean savings come slowly and require human-controlled policy and evidence gates.
- Treat modernization as a spectrum and manage it as a portfolio: Operate, Comply, Harden & Simplify, and Compete & Grow. Use a Good Bank/Bad Bank approach with a policy-driven bridge, deterministic routing, and continuous reconciliation so migrations are auditable, reversible, and lead to real decommissioning.
- Use AI as an assistant to cut toil, automate evidence, speed analysis, and help translate legacy code, but don’t give it authority to change policies or skip validation. Capture the realistic savings to fund simplification and growth, aiming for practical targets (for example ~50/50 over five years) rather than expecting an immediate 60/40 to 40/60 flip.