Some time ago, Rust had no viable replacement at all. If somebody came asking "hey, how can I replace Rust on this system level software" the only possible answ

Some time ago, Rust had no viable replacement at all. If somebody came asking "hey, how can I replace Rust on this system level software" the only possible answer was "you don't". Nowadays, alternatives exist, and so people can answer with one. None of that has any meaning for the popularity of Rust or lack thereof.