JDK 27, due in September, kicks off with a post-quantum hybrid key exchange proposal to bolster the security of network communications. Credit: Lazy_Bear / Shutterstock Java Development Kit (JDK) 27, a release of standard Java planned for arrival in September, already has a feature proposed for it: a post-quantum hybrid key exchange capability to bolster network security. The feature, post-quantum hybrid key xxchange for TLS 1.3, was listed on the OpenJDK page for JDK 27 on January 13. It would enhance the security of Java applications requiring network communications by implementing hybrid key exchange algorithms. These algorithms defend against future quantum computing attacks by combining a quantum-resistant algorithm with a traditional algorithm. Applications that use javax.net.ssl APIs will benefit from the improved algorithms by default, without change to existing code, according to the JEP (JDK Enhancement Proposal). JDK 27 will be a non-LTS (Long-Term Support) release backed by six months of support, the same as JDK 26, which is due March 17. The current standard Java release, JDK 25, is an LTS release backed by multiple years of support. Other possible features for JDK 27 are preview features in JDK 26. These include: PEM (privacy-enhanced mail) encodings of cryptographic objects Structured concurrency Lazy constants, and Primitive types in patterns, instanceof, and switch. Another strong possibility is the Vector API, now being incubated in JDK 26. Oracle, the steward of standard Java, last week detailed its plans for improving Java in 2026, with work on features such as value types, structured concurrency, and AOT (ahead-of-time) compilation. These features may not necessarily arrive in 2026, however. JavaProgramming LanguagesSoftware Development