For backend frameworks, I'd look at Quarkus [1] or Micronaut [2]. Both are geared towards configuration, async processing and native compilation, along with a

For backend frameworks, I'd look at Quarkus [1] or Micronaut [2]. Both are geared towards configuration, async processing and native compilation, along with a ton of options to integrate with external systems. For something a bit lighter weight, Vert.x [3] is a good option (Quarkus is based on it). [1] - https://quarkus.io/ https://quarkus.io/ [2] - https://micronaut.io/ https://micronaut.io/ [3] - https://vertx.io/ https://vertx.io/ You'll need Java 1.8+, and Maven or Gradle for the toolchain (I prefer the former). Intellij is the best IDE but I get by with VSCode.