Retrofitting Null-Safety into Java

Explore a comprehensive conference talk from ACM SIGPLAN's WITS'24 that delves into the critical issue of null pointer errors in Java and presents an innovative solution. Learn about Nullsafe, a compiler plugin developed to extend Java's type system with nullness, and its successful implementation at Meta. Discover how this technology has significantly reduced NullPointerException errors in production code, with decreases ranging from 35% to 80%. Gain insights into the challenges of retrofitting null-safety into an established language like Java, and compare this approach to other modern languages that have built-in null-safety features. Understand the limitations of Java 8's Optional and why a more robust solution was necessary. This 36-minute presentation by Artem Pianykh offers valuable knowledge for Java developers and anyone interested in improving code safety and reliability in large-scale software projects.