In the world of programming, there is a growing number of tools optimized for working with WebAssembly, and one of the most promising options is Moonbit. Introduced last year by programmer Hongbo Zhang, Moonbit is a new programming language that aims to deliver high performance and minimal code size, making it a great choice for modern cloud and front-end applications.
Moonbit is a language compiled in WebAssembly, JavaScript, and Assembly. While WebAssembly initially offered increased convenience by compiling multiple languages for direct launch in browsers and other platforms, existing languages like Java, Go, and Rust tend to produce a large amount of code when compiled via WebAssembly, leading to reduced productivity.
It is this challenge that led Hongbo Zhang to develop Moonbit – an open-source language specifically optimized for WebAssembly and tailored for cloud, edge computing, and front-end applications.
Zhang highlights the vast potential of WebAssembly in terms of cross-platform compatibility, safety, and speed. Moonbit was created to fully leverage the capabilities of WebAssembly that current languages struggle to achieve. “You can’t modify the GO semantics to fit with WebAssembly. A new language must be created to fully utilize WebAssembly capabilities,” Zhang explains.
Derived from languages like Rust and Go, Moonbit incorporates features such as pattern matching, static types, type inference like Rust but with a more accessible learning curve. Additionally, Moonbit will soon integrate a garbage collector with automatic reference counting (ARC) for automatic memory management, akin to Swift. Furthermore, Moonbit adopts the “Less means more” philosophy from Go.
Zhang also highlights the rapid compilation speed of Moonbit, contrasting with the lengthy compilation process of Rust. Moonbit excels in this aspect, compiling significantly faster than Rust.
Another standout feature of Moonbit is its integrated development environment (IDE), readily available to developers. This quick provision of an IDE is uncommon for new languages, as IDEs typically take years to develop. Zhang’s expertise in language tools enabled Moonbit to have a fast and reliable IDE, enhancing the language’s convenience for developers.
Moonbit caters to developers who prioritize performance, allowing the utilization of WebAssembly for both front-end and server applications, as well as Edge Computing. Zhang emphasizes that Moonbit generates JavaScript code that outperforms manual JavaScript in terms of performance.
In essence, Moonbit is an innovative programming language offering high performance and optimization for WebAssembly and other backends, providing developers with robust tools to create modern applications.