>Node.js was a contender but lost steam. May be .net once it becomes truly platform neutral have a chance to take on Java.

C# and CLR lost it a few years ago, GraalVM is taking this space really rapidly now.

I'm in opposition to most comments here hating Java for whatever reason, hoping JS or C# to destabilize this system. I absolutely love Java and its ecosystem. Super mature libraries, library for everything, great tools, literally for everything. A lot of tutorials, massive investment from several corporations contributing to OpenJDK. Java is super hot right now.