InfoQ Java Trends Report 2025

Innovators

The Embabel Agent Framework and Koog, created by Rod Johnson and JetBrains respectively, are new open-source agent platforms for the JVM introduced in 2025. These frameworks were designed to enable developers to build and run AI agents, signaling a significant shift in Java’s role in the AI landscape.

This report summarizes the InfoQ Java editorial team’s current perspective on technology adoption and emerging trends within the Java space, focusing on Java, related languages, the JVM, and Java-based frameworks.

Why This Matters

The ideal model of software development often assumes a steady pace of innovation, but the reality is frequently hampered by technical debt and the cost of modernization. Organizations face significant challenges updating legacy applications and outdated Java versions; a lack of action can lead to security vulnerabilities and lost opportunities, costing millions in remediation and lost productivity.

Key Insights

• AI on the JVM accelerates: New frameworks like Embabel, Koog, Spring AI, and LangChain4j drive rapid adoption of AI-native and AI-assisted development in Java, 2025.
• Java 25 anchors a modern baseline: The new LTS improves readability, concurrency, and performance, while frameworks standardize on Java 17+, 2025.
• OpenRewrite adoption: Many projects have been modernized using OpenRewrite, including the javax to jakarta namespace migration, 2025.

Practical Applications

• Use Case: Spring AI, released in May 2025, features a ChatClient interface supporting twenty AI models with multi-modal inputs and structured outputs.
• Pitfall: Relying solely on AI-generated code without careful review can introduce bugs and maintainability issues, leading to increased technical debt.

References:

• https://www.infoq.com/articles/java-trends-report-2025/