Jank Programming Language Introduces Custom Intermediate Representation
Original: Jank now has its own custom IR
Why This Matters
Custom IR could significantly improve performance of native Clojure compilation
Jank, a native Clojure dialect compiler, has developed its own custom intermediate representation (IR) to enable Clojure-specific optimizations. The IR operates at Clojure's semantic level, supporting features like vars, transients, and persistent data structures for better optimization than LLVM alone.
Jank compiler creator Jeaye Wilkerson announced the development of a custom intermediate representation designed specifically for Clojure semantics. Unlike LLVM IR which operates at a low level without understanding Clojure concepts, jank's IR works with Clojure's vars, transients, persistent data structures, and lazy sequences. The IR is stored as C++ data structures but can be rendered to Clojure data for debugging. Wilkerson explained that LLVM had limited optimization opportunities with jank's previous approach due to Clojure's dynamism and polymorphism. The new IR aims to enable optimizations that compete with JVM performance while maintaining portability across CPU architectures.