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The person who created C# also created TypeScript and Turbo Pascal

The Pragmatic Engineer • 2025-06-08 • 1:08 minutes • YouTube

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The Genius Behind C#: How Anders Hejlsberg Shaped Modern Programming

When .NET launched alongside Visual Studio, it marked a significant milestone in software development. However, one of the pivotal reasons for its success was the design of the C# programming language itself. At the heart of C#’s creation is the visionary Anders Hejlsberg, whose influence continues to resonate in the developer community.

The Legacy of Anders Hejlsberg

Before joining Microsoft, Anders Hejlsberg was a key figure at Borland, a renowned developer tools company during the late 1980s and early 1990s. He was the mastermind behind Turbo Pascal—a revolutionary programming environment that combined an editor, debugger, and compiler into a single, lightning-fast package. Remarkably, Turbo Pascal could run efficiently on PCs with as little as 256K of RAM, providing developers with rapid feedback and a seamless coding experience.

Hejlsberg’s work on Turbo Pascal was notable not just for its speed but also for its thoughtful language design. He introduced meaningful features to Pascal, enhancing both its usability and power. This combination of performance and developer-friendly design set a new standard in programming tools.

Bringing Developer-Centric Design to Microsoft

In the mid-1990s, Anders Hejlsberg joined Microsoft, bringing with him a deep understanding of what developers need. His arrival helped rejuvenate Microsoft’s approach to developer tools and language design. He had a unique ability to balance adding powerful new features to a language while avoiding unnecessary complexity—a skill that is crucial in language design.

Hejlsberg’s influence is not limited to C#. He also played a major role in creating TypeScript, a language that has become essential for modern web development. His ongoing commitment to improving developer experiences underscores his status as a true innovator in programming languages.

The Impact of C# and Its Design Philosophy

C# was designed with developers in mind. It combines the power and performance needed for modern applications with a clean, intuitive syntax that is easy to learn and use. This design ethos—rooted in Hejlsberg’s experience and philosophy—helped .NET and Visual Studio become dominant tools in the software development world.

For over 25 years, Anders Hejlsberg has worked tirelessly to refine programming languages so that developers can be more productive and create better software. His genius lies not just in technical expertise but in understanding the developer’s perspective and needs.

Conclusion

The success of .NET and C# is inseparable from the vision and craftsmanship of Anders Hejlsberg. From Turbo Pascal’s blazing speed to the modern elegance of C# and TypeScript, his contributions have shaped the way millions of developers write code today. As software development continues to evolve, the principles he championed—speed, simplicity, and developer focus—remain as relevant as ever.

By appreciating the history and thought behind C#, developers can gain a deeper understanding of why the language works so well and how it continues to adapt to the changing landscape of software development. Anders Hejlsberg’s story is a testament to the power of thoughtful language design in driving innovation and success.

📝 Transcript (34 entries):

So,net was huge when it launched with Visual Studio hand in hand. But a third part of why I think it was really successful design was C# itself. Where did C# come from? The real genius behind C# is Andrew Hiles. Especially in the early days, Anders is still at Microsoft. He's still building languages. Also is responsible for TypeScript. Before Microsoft, Anders worked at Borland. It was an iconic developer tools company in the early 90s, late '8s, and built some amazing tools. One of which was called Turbo Pascal. And Anders was the guy who wrote Turbo Pascal. And you know, part of what made Turbo Pascal revolutionary, it was just lightning fast. And so you could literally on a PC with 256K of RAM. You know, it had an editor, it had a debugger, and if you run a few seconds, your Pascal app would work. And he added good language features into Pascal and really built that. And we were very fortunate. He joined Microsoft in the mid '9s and really brought both that developer ethos. He kind of really helped rejuvenate the developer ethos at the time, and then also just a language sensibility. And I've worked with Anders now for 25 plus years and he's just absolute genius in terms of understanding both what to add into a language and what not to.