Google Builders Weblog: Google at KotlinConf ‘23

Posted by Márton Braun, Developer Relations Engineer

As a part of Google’s ongoing dedication to supporting the Kotlin language, we’re actually excited to be a gold degree sponsor for KotlinConf once more this yr. Grace Kloba shared the story of Google’s investments in Kotlin throughout the keynote, which is recapped on this submit. You’ll additionally discover the listing of talks by Google from the occasion’s schedule beneath, be sure to catch these on the dwell stream.

For a abstract of all KotlinConf keynote bulletins, learn the weblog submit by JetBrains.

Kotlin began gaining recognition within the Android neighborhood round 2016. We have been additionally impressed with Kotlin’s concise syntax, trendy options, and security. In 2017, we introduced official assist for Kotlin on Android, and dedicated to its future by creating the Kotlin Basis with JetBrains.

Since then we invested in Kotlin by including assist in Android Studio, educating the language to builders, and going Kotlin-first with our libraries, documentation, and samples. We additionally constructed Kotlin Image Processing, an API that permits annotation processors to run as much as twice as quick as earlier options.

Immediately, Kotlin is the preferred language for Android growth. Over 95% of the highest 1000 Android apps use Kotlin, and over 50% {of professional} Android builders use Kotlin as their main language (in contrast with 25% selecting the Java programming language).

Amongst skilled Android builders utilizing Kotlin, we noticed a 96.9% optimistic satisfaction price in our newest annual survey, which is 9-points increased than their Java counterparts.

As our last step in making Kotlin the only language for Android growth, we’re excited to announce at present that the Gradle Kotlin DSL is turning into the default construct language for Android apps, beginning in Android Studio Giraffe. Learn the weblog submit to be taught extra.

Since going Kotlin-first, all new Jetpack libraries are written in Kotlin. Jetpack Compose, our trendy toolkit for constructing Android apps, is Kotlin-only. It makes intensive use of Kotlin’s language options, and its implementation is made attainable by Kotlin’s wealthy compiler API, which permits us to generate state administration logic for you.

Jetpack Compose is altering the way in which builders construct apps. The crew from Clue shared with us that their growth pace elevated as much as 3x after rewriting their app in Compose.
Over 23% of the highest 1000 Android apps ship with Compose, greater than double yr over yr.

There are lots of assets obtainable to be taught Compose. For current Android builders seeking to broaden their data, we’ve printed the Jetpack Compose for Android Builders course. For rookies to programming, we suggest taking the Android Fundamentals with Compose course to be taught Kotlin, Android, and Compose.

Kotlin turned usually obtainable for Android growth inside Google in 2019. Since then, most of our Android apps are being constructed with Kotlin. For instance of the advantages, when the Google Dwelling crew migrated to Kotlin they noticed a 33% lower in NullPointerExceptions, which tremendously improved the top person expertise.

Nevertheless, Google’s curiosity in Kotlin doesn’t cease at Android apps. Greater than 45% of our engineers who write Kotlin use it for server growth. We have now over 15 million strains of Kotlin code in Google’s supply management system, and this has been doubling yr over yr.

To assist this, we’ve a devoted crew constructing instruments to combine Kotlin into Google’s ecosystem. You’ll be able to catch the Adopting Kotlin at Google scale session for extra particulars.

We’re wanting ahead to the new compiler in Kotlin 2.0, which will likely be a serious enchancment for developer productiveness. We have now a devoted crew working with JetBrains on the compiler, and we’re working to include it into our tooling, together with Android Studio, KSP, and the Compose compiler. We’re additionally leveraging our giant inside codebase of Kotlin code to confirm the compatibility of the brand new compiler.

Wanting ahead, we’re experimenting with Kotlin Multiplatform. This consists of the Google Workspace crew, who’ve a prototype with the enterprise logic of Google Docs working on iOS utilizing Kotlin Multiplatform and Kotlin/Native. Try the Kotlin Multiplatform in Google Workspace lightning speak to be taught extra.

As a part of our explorations into Kotlin Multiplatform, we’ve additionally made contributions that can profit the neighborhood:

We’ve ported a set of Jetpack libraries to multiplatform. This lets you use instruments and APIs you realize and love from Android and apply them to multiplatform. 

We’ve contributed to the Kotlin/Native toolchain, bettering its efficiency. 

We’ve been serving to out with the Gradle plugin for Kotlin Multiplatform, to provide you extra management over every goal platform whereas nonetheless sharing as a lot code as attainable.

As a founding member of the Kotlin Basis, we’re excited in regards to the Basis’s expansions introduced at KotlinConf:

Inviting extra firms to collaborate on the event and promotion of Kotlin via a membership program. 

Providing funding for particular person authors of actively maintained, open supply Kotlin Multiplatform libraries.

With these steps, we proceed to foster a wholesome ecosystem for the language, and guarantee its future development.

We stay up for sharing extra in our classes at KotlinConf, which you’ll tune in to on the dwell stream. If you happen to’re attending in individual, you can even go to us at our sales space to have a chat about Kotlin.

Jeffrey van Gogh, John Pampuch

Spring + Kotlin = Fashionable + Reactive + Productive

Josh Lengthy, James Ward

Kotlin Multiplatform in Google Workspace

Jason Parachoniak

Kotlin Multiplatform Conversions at Android Jetpack Scale

Dustin Lam, James Ward

Márton Braun

Adventures constructing a Kotlin Multiplatform Benchmarking Library

Rahul Ravikumar

Tyson Henning

Kevin Bierhoff

Márton Braun

*Java is a trademark or registered trademark of Oracle and/or its associates.