Probably not, but is it worth starting new projects with 16-bit MCUs in the year 2024? 32-bit MCUs are cheap and plentiful in offering. I realize the IRC proto

Probably not, but is it worth starting new projects with 16-bit MCUs in the year 2024? 32-bit MCUs are cheap and plentiful in offering. I realize the IRC protocol is easy to implement (though the protocol itself has flaws that make it difficult e.g. to identify which message is a response to your query, IRC3 addresses this) and I too have done it in the past, but I see zero reasons to embrace it today.