New Features and Improvements

Team Spring AIO I am pleased to share with you the latest news from JetBrains: the first EAP version of IntelliJ IDEA 2024.3 is now available. Among the innovations are improvements for Java and Kotlin, a pumped-up AI Assistant, and an improved UX.

The Early Access Program (EAP) for IntelliJ IDEA 2024.3 has started! first build availablewhere you can test new features and improvements prepared for the next major release.

AI Assistant: Inline Suggestions

Now you can interact with AI Assistant right in the editor! The experimental feature allows you to enter commands in natural language and get code changes right away. Just write a query, press Tab, and the assistant will make the changes. If you are not satisfied with the result, you can easily cancel it (Ctrl+Z) and refine the query.

Java and Kotlin

Improving Condition Analysis

The data analysis engine has been significantly improved to more accurately detect aliasing (when different references point to the same object), reducing the number of false positives and increasing the accuracy of analysis for Java and Kotlin.

For example:

Previously, IntelliJ IDEA would have considered that a1 And a2 – these are completely unrelated entities, which is generally quite logical, but not always correct.

If we pass the same reference to both arguments, the function will actually print ALIASED! – this means that a1 And a2 are in fact one and the same specimen.

With an improved data processing engine, IntelliJ IDEA now handles aliases more accurately, resulting in fewer false positives in inspections and a more reliable coding experience.

K2 mode is enabled by default

Starting with 2024.3 EAP 1 and all subsequent builds, K2 mode will be enabled by default. K2 is a new implementation of Kotlin support in IntelliJ IDEA, aimed at improving the stability of the environment and preparing for future Kotlin language features. You can read more about it in a separate article.

We plan to make K2 mode the main one in the next versions.

Some plugins that depend on the K1 mode API are not yet compatible with K2. To speed up the migration process, we have prepared Guide for plugin developersusing the K1 API.

Multi-dollar interpolation support in Kotlin

Starting with this build, IntelliJ IDEA with K2 mode enabled supports an experimental language feature called multi-dollar interpolation. This feature makes it easier to work with strings containing characters $eliminating the need to use workarounds such as ${'$'}.

For example, declaring JSON schemas in code now looks cleaner:

Improving user experience

Spell and grammar check during indexing

We continue to optimize the wait time for building the project model and indexing so that key features are available immediately. In this update, spelling and grammar checking is now available even during indexing. This allows the IDE to find errors in, for example, Markdown documents and documentation tags without waiting for indexing to complete.

Display branch name on welcome screen

The branch name is now displayed on the welcome screen, which helps to better organize work with different versions of the project and easily switch between working directories.

Workspaces in IntelliJ IDEA

This EAP build introduces a new feature called workspaces. Now you can manage multiple projects at once, with each project using its own build technology and tools, working independently. For now, to set up a workspace, you need to install plugin from JetBrains Marketplace. For more details on the concept, use cases, and implementation, please read the separate article.

Here are the most important updates from the first week of IntelliJ IDEA 2024.3 Early Access. The full list of changes can be found here.

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