Repeating what I said in the original comment: the web should HAVE a VM; it shouldn't BE a VM. The web is hyperlinked DATA that optionally leads you to CODE.

Repeating what I said in the original comment: the web should HAVE a VM; it shouldn't BE a VM. The web is hyperlinked DATA that optionally leads you to CODE. The VM-centric design is mistaken and broken, and it's a moot point because it won't ever be deployed in at a large scale in practice. Like Kay's other designs, it's OK for a small scale and clean slate, but not for a large scale. Importantly, the web can have and has had MULTIPLE VMs -- Java (via NSAPI), Flash, JavaScript, WebAssembly, and I would say PDF since all browsers now have readers built-in. The design of languages for code is more difficult and ephemeral than the design of languages for data. The web scales with TIME (decades), not just users (billions of people). Kay's designs don't scale in either direction. (Somewhat related comments on the Lindy effect, i.e. what techologies last: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=26772565 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=26772565)