[threatofrain]

I think static site generation will simply be a feature of a build tool like Webpack or Gulp, maybe as a plugin, and either way there will be an api for developers. Or it will simply be part of a larger build chain / automation system somehow.

Static site generator doesn't mean there's no backend. A website is called 'dynamic' when its operation depends on communicating with a server. The JS logic delivered to the client can range from animation to async http requests.

The distinction between "static site generator" and Webpack / Gulp is very gray. It all depends on what you want to do with your client-side JS logic.