Yeah even in the earliest designs for the game, software was a natural possibility considered for inclusion a number of times. Each time I ended up rejecting it because it couldn't perfectly meet all requirements for good lore, logic, mechanics, transparency, and UI.
It's certainly something one feels is missing in a robotic/computer world! At this point an expansion like that, if ever added, would be pretty massive. (Certainly fun to brainstorm about, though!)