[bjackman]

It's a weird one - I've been at Google for more than 5 years. I know from the stats that we have a zillion lines of actively developed Java, there must be huge swathes of the company that you could even call a "Java shop". I dig into random bits of code all the time. And yet I've looked at Java maybe three times in my tenure. And if I needed to submit Java code, I would not have a single contact to ping for readability review.

Java was the first language I learned in my CS degree, I still think this was a sensible choice by the CS department, but I don't think I've written a single piece of Java since I left 10 years ago!

It seems like a lot of Java usecases may be big and important but kinda isolated! Something about where they sit in the economic value chain perhaps?

[yeasku]

Most people work for companies that use tech, not that create tech.

There the world is not like at Google. Sap, Java and .net are what people work with.

[bjackman]

I am saying Google is an extremely heavy user of Java.

In terms of programming languages, Google is very much a microcosm of the industry.

(.net is the exception though. Not much of that at Google).

[yolo3000]

So what are the main languages there? Go? Python?

[fuzztester]

I've read that C++, Java, Python, JavaScript, and recently Golang are the main languages used at Google.

Edit: And maybe some Dart and Kotlin too.

[fuzztester]

And later, I thought I'd check, you know, what Google itself has to say on this: ;)

what are the main programming languages used at Google

Result (unformatted):

AI Overview Google utilizes a diverse set of programming languages across its various products and services. The main programming languages used at Google include:

C++: Widely used for performance-critical applications and system-level programming, such as in the core search engine, Google Chrome, and other backend infrastructure. Java: Essential for Android app development and significant portions of Google's backend systems. Python: Employed for a wide range of tasks including scripting, data analysis, machine learning, and web development (e.g., YouTube). JavaScript: Fundamental for web application development and frontend interactions across Google's web-based services. Go (Golang): Google's own open-source language, increasingly used for cloud-based projects, microservices, and network programming due to its efficiency and concurrency features.

    SQL:
    Crucial for managing and interacting with databases, which are integral to almost all data-driven applications at Google. 

While these are the primary languages, Google also utilizes other languages such as Rust (for projects like Fuchsia OS), Kotlin (for Android development), and Dart (for Flutter framework development) for specific use cases and projects. The choice of language often depends on the project's requirements for performance, scalability, development time, and existing infrastructure. Dive deeper in AI Mode AI responses may include mistakes. Learn more

So it looks like the main ones I missed were Rust and SQL.

Dang! I should have thought of SQL, at least for their IT ops, but I was thinking only about their customer-facing apps.

Anyway ...

[melodyogonna]

C++ is my guess

[munksbeer]

What products do you work on and what language?

[bjackman]

I work on stuff that's adjacent to system software (I'm actually mostly a kernel engineer). But I've touched code in all the major languages at Google: loads of C++ and Go, much less of Python and Typescript. But Java/Kotlin is the only one I've never touched at all.