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What is the V8 JavaScript Engine?

Overview

V8 is Google's open-source JavaScript and WebAssembly engine written in C++. It powers:

  • Google Chrome
  • Node.js
  • Deno
  • Electron

Key Features

  • Just-in-time (JIT) compilation
  • Efficient garbage collection
  • ECMAScript standards compliance
  • WebAssembly support
  • Cross-platform (Windows, macOS, Linux, ARM)

Architecture Components

  1. Ignition: Interpreter for fast startup
  2. TurboFan: Optimizing compiler
  3. Orinoco: Garbage collector
  4. Liftoff: WebAssembly baseline compiler

Chromium Integration

  • Executes JavaScript in renderer processes
  • Integrated with Blink (rendering engine)
  • Enables Web Platform APIs
  • Implements ECMAScript in parallel with browser evolution

Performance

  • Average 5-10x speed boost over interpreters
  • Achieves near-native performance through:
    • Hidden classes
    • Inline caching
    • Optimizing hot code paths

Benchmark examples:

  • Speedometer 3.0
  • Web Tooling Benchmark
  • Kraken JavaScript Benchmark

Beyond Browsers

  • Server-side runtime (Node.js)
  • Desktop apps (Electron)
  • IoT devices
  • Database engines (MongoDB)

Official Site | Source Code