Inheritance has been discussed as a performance optimization in programming, particularly in the context of object-oriented programming. Some users note that while inheritance was meant as a performance hack, it is often criticized for potentially harming performance due to added complexity and the need for additional address lookups. This has prompted many game engines to explore alternatives to inheritance. Modern garbage collectors (GC) have improved significantly and may handle memory management more efficiently, minimizing some earlier concerns about using inheritance. The varied interpretations of 'inheritance' in different fields (like biology, coding, and finance) add a layer of complexity and intrigue to the discussion.