The many, many, many JavaScript runtimes of the last decade

9 months ago

JavaScript runtimes have expanded significantly over the last decade, enabling execution in diverse environments like the cloud, edge computing, microcontrollers, and native apps.
Edge computing saw the rise of runtimes like Cloudflare Workers, Deno Deploy, Bun, and AWS's LLRT, each optimized for low-latency execution.
Microcontroller-focused runtimes like JerryScript, Duktape, and Elk emerged to run JavaScript on resource-constrained devices with minimal RAM and storage.
Polyglot engines like Rhino, Nashorn, and Graal.js enable JavaScript to interoperate with other languages like Java, C#, Python, and Rust.
Native app development frameworks like React Native, NativeScript, and Electron leverage JavaScript runtimes to build cross-platform mobile, desktop, and Smart TV apps.
Node.js has been adapted for mobile and desktop but remains less dominant in GUI development compared to frameworks like Electron and React Native.
The diversity of JavaScript runtimes reflects varying optimization priorities, such as startup performance, bundle size, and native API access.
Competition among engines (V8, JavaScriptCore, Hermes, QuickJS) drives innovation, ensuring JavaScript remains versatile across different use cases.

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