I'd worked in OpenStack for 4 years and with Python in general for about 10 years. I can say from my experience it is definitely possible to maintain large cod

I'd worked in OpenStack for 4 years and with Python in general for about 10 years. I can say from my experience it is definitely possible to maintain large codebases in Python. The type errors of the superficial variety that the OP refers to were usually caught before they made it to production (and were rare besides if you were experienced enough to avoid them). It requires discipline to maintain tests and write code in a way that avoids errors. I've been learning OCaml and Haskell for a couple of years along with formal methods using TLA+ and Lean. I used to think type theory was the accounting of maths. I still think that's at least partly true but the power it brings you as a programmer is quite powerful. I find working with Haskell or OCaml to be much more productive. Instead of stepping through a debugger or following tracebacks (a descriptive error) I get prescriptive errors as I make changes to a Haskell codebase. The propositions in the type system form a much better specification than unit tests alone. I still like Python and C for many reasons and will continue using them where appropriate. However I think Haskell/OCaml offer quite enough power that everyone should at least consider what they bring to the table.