In 2026, Java keeps evolving: Project Valhalla is gunning for merging its value types preview in the second half of this year; Babylon wants to incubate code reflection; Loom will probably finalize the structured concurrency API; Leyden plans to ship AOT code compilation; and Amber hopes to present JEPs on constant patterns and pattern assignments. And those are just the most progressed features - more are in the pipeline and discussed in this episode of the Inside Java Newscast.

Welcome to the new Inside Java Podcast. In this meta episode, Nicolai Parlog introduces you to the podcast's new structure with two shows under one umbrella: The long-form conversations you know become Ask the Architects episodes and they'll be accompanied by the Inside Java Newscast as a podcast.

In this special episode of the Inside Java Podcast, Nicolai Parlog talks to Adam Bien about scripting with Java, to Maurice Naftalin about the history and tradeoffs of the collections framework and erasure, and to Tom Cools about the innovative way the Belgian Java User Group organizes itself.

This Inside Java Podcast takes a meta approach. Instead of focusing on specific features, it explores the bigger picture: What are the right problems for Java to tackle? What are the current and future challenges for the Java platform? Why is predictability so important for Java, and what's driving the recent focus on learners and students?

Nicolai Parlog discusses these topics with Georges Saab, Senior Vice President of the Java Platform Group and Chair of the OpenJDK Governing Board.

Java's development embraces the past as well as the future and after contributing to it for over 30 years, John Rose is intimately familiar with the process. In this episode he talks about feature design, the right amount of technical debt (which isn't actually zero), why Rice's theorem demands a mix of static and dynamic checks, how Project Sumatra eventually birthed Panama and Babylon, and more.

In this episode, Nicolai interviews John Rose, Senior Architect of the Java Virtual Machine, who brings over 30 years of experience advancing the Java platform.

Java is a 30-year success story, made possible because its development consistently aligned with users' needs. In its early days, the platform required new features quickly, but over time, minimizing code breakage while carefully evolving the platform became essential. Critical junctures along that path included the introduction of modules and the current strive toward integrity by default.

Nicolai Parlog talks to Mark Reinhold, Chief Architect of the Java Platform, who brings nearly three decades of experience shaping Java's evolution.

OpenJDK projects such as Amber and Valhalla are renowned for their careful and methodical approach to designing and introducing new features to the Java platform.

In this episode, Nicolai Parlog is joined by Brian Goetz, Java Language Architect at Oracle and lead of both Project Amber and Project Valhalla. Brian shares insights and updates on these influential initiatives as they discuss Amber's upcoming feature arc, Valhalla's plans for null-restriction, and more.

Java is not just adding features, it's also removing old ones that became obsolete and are either a maintenance burden, performance drag, or hazardous to use. In this episode we touch on 32bit ports, applets, finalization, and the security manager.

Nicolai Parlog talks to Stuart Marks, who works in the JDK Core Libraries group at Oracle. Right now, he's dressed in a lab coat and wears a stethoscope because he embodies his alter ego Dr. Deprecator.

Nicolai Parlog talks to Stuart Marks, who works in the JDK Core Libraries group at Oracle. Right now, he's dressed in a lab coat and wears a stethoscope because he embodies his alter ego Dr. Deprecator.