The Path to Components - WebAssembly System Interface Evolution

Explore the evolution of WebAssembly System Interface (WASI) and the emergence of a new component model in this keynote address from KubeCon + CloudNativeCon Europe. Delve into the challenges faced by the WASI standardization effort since its inception in 2019, and discover how the development of a foundational "component model" layer aims to address these issues. Learn about the improved design that offers a more lightweight, composable, and declarative unit of code, along with new Wit and World syntax for defining WASI and other component interfaces. Gain insights into the original problems encountered, proposed solutions, and examples of next-iteration WASI interfaces in action. Understand the paths for incremental adoption and the potential impact on the future of WebAssembly outside the browser. Cover topics such as MVP, portable interfaces, system interfaces, POSIX, parametric linking, complex data types, file describing, resource and handle types, low-level concurrency, future streams, components, developer experience, worlds, virtualization, and the current status of these developments.

Introduction
MVP
Portable Interface
System Interface
Posix
Why are people putting WASM into production
Linking via the file system
Parametric Linking
Complex Data
Value Types
File Describing
Resource and Handle Types
Low Level Concurrency
Future Streams
Components OMG
The Developer Experience
Worlds
Virtualization
The Big Picture
Status