Zena programming language
Shares rank 133 of 163 programming languages by recommenders
A TypeScript-like language that compiles to WebAssembly, with GC and WASI support, fixing several TypeScript issues and suiting sandboxed generated code.
A TypeScript-like language that compiles to WebAssembly, with GC and WASI support, fixing several TypeScript issues and suiting sandboxed generated code.
6 people gave an opinion
- recommend it
- 6
- criticize it
- 0
- approval share
- 100%
Recommended in 2 of 13 months
- November 2025: not recommended
- December 2025: not recommended
- January 2026: not recommended
- February 2026: not recommended
- March 2026: not recommended
- April 2026: not recommended
- May 2026: not recommended
- June 2026: not recommended
- July 2026: not recommended
- August 2026: not recommended
- September 2026: recommended
- October 2026: recommended
- November 2026: not recommended (month in progress)
Why it doesn’t carry the badge
- 6 people recommend itNeeds 10 or more, not met.
- Nobody criticizes itNeeds 2 to 1 or better, met.
- Recommended in 2 of 13 monthsNeeds 4 or more, not met.
The same three rules apply to every product, and the badge can’t be bought. How the badge works
What people say about it
The reasons people give, with the number of comments that give each one. Open a reason to read what they said.
Why people recommend it
Each mark is one comment
TypeScript-like syntax with fixes
“It's quite a bit like JS/TS, but fixes a lot of things and runs forward with features that will take JS many years to get to”
Comment from 22 Sep 2026 in “The JavaScript Midlife Crisis” “It's like a fixed up TypeScript specifically tailored for Wasm GC that can produce very small and fast binaries”
Comment from 14 Sep 2026 in “Ask HN: What are you working on? (September 2026)” “A typescript alike that compiles to wasm, and which really leans in to modern wasm, such as gc, wasi.”
Comment from 12 Sep 2026 in “A few good ideas in programming languages” Targets modern WebAssembly features
“It's like a fixed up TypeScript specifically tailored for Wasm GC that can produce very small and fast binaries”
Comment from 14 Sep 2026 in “Ask HN: What are you working on? (September 2026)” “A typescript alike that compiles to wasm, and which really leans in to modern wasm, such as gc, wasi.”
Comment from 12 Sep 2026 in “A few good ideas in programming languages” Isolates generated code via WebAssembly
“fine-grained isolation, which Zena gets via Web Assembly, is critical for limiting the capabilities of generated code”
Comment from 27 Sep 2026 in “Evolving programming languages in the AI era” “I believe this can work better as an "ai-first" language than some other attempts I've seen”
Comment from 27 Sep 2026 in “Evolving programming languages in the AI era”
Other programming languages people recommend
The four most recommended other programming languages, with the same counts for each, so you can compare like for like. The tick on each bar marks the 2 to 1 line the badge needs.
See all 163 programming languages, rankedWhat people said
All 11 comments that mention it, newest first. Each links to the original comment.
“I'm doing it myself: https://zena-lang.dev/”
“From experience with Zena, this is not true at all.”
“I believe this can work better as an "ai-first" language than some other attempts I've seen”
“fine-grained isolation, which Zena gets via Web Assembly, is critical for limiting the capabilities of generated code”
“It's quite a bit like JS/TS, but fixes a lot of things and runs forward with features that will take JS many years to get to”
“This looks pretty cool! I love TypeScript.”
“It's like a fixed up TypeScript specifically tailored for Wasm GC that can produce very small and fast binaries”
“Dimensional types and formal verification make me super excited to see more of this language.”
“GC + borrowing is a great combo because you don't need borrowing for everything”
“A typescript alike that compiles to wasm, and which really leans in to modern wasm, such as gc, wasi.”
“Also thanks for your work on Zena, and mentioning it here! I've looked for exactly this before.”
Counts come from 1,795,640 Hacker News comments, November 2025 to November 2026. How we count. Report a mistake.