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Elon Musk's Team Faces Challenges Modernizing Social Security IT

4/4/2025

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Summary

Story summary

The Social Security Administration's struggle to replace outdated COBOL systems with modern Java by 2017 has been exacerbated by poor planning and the COVID-19 pandemic. Now, a team led by Elon Musk faces uncertainty, as they lack a coherent strategy for tackling the complexities of legacy IT systems, leaving the future of modernization in jeopardy.

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Story summary

The Social Security Administration's struggle to replace outdated COBOL systems with modern Java by 2017 has been exacerbated by poor planning and the COVID-19 pandemic. Now, a team led by Elon Musk faces uncertainty, as they lack a coherent strategy for tackling the complexities of legacy IT systems, leaving the future of modernization in jeopardy.