It's way more than terse classes. The syntax everywhere is cleaner. Higher order functions look so much nicer. Using val/var is superior to having to remembe

It's way more than terse classes. The syntax everywhere is cleaner. Higher order functions look so much nicer. Using val/var is superior to having to remember to write 'final' all the time. Kotlin also handles nullability way better. Ah, also, default arguments for constructors/methods. These features prevent a lot of developer mistakes, and thus better code is often achieved. Also, Kotlin usually forges ahead on features, and the Java is playing catch up. Take data classes for instance. If anything it seems like Kotlin gave Java a good kick in the pants to get it to start developing faster and adding modern language features.