Optimizing Java Performance with the Vector API for Data-Parallel Computations
Vladimir Pavlović, K. Širić, Branko Mihaljević, Aleksander Radovan · 2025
The Java Vector API efficiently optimizes dataparallel operations using SIMD (Single Instruction, Multiple Data), making it particularly useful for applications that rely on vector-based numerical computations, such as simulations, machine learning, and data analytics. This paper analyzes the Vector API's design, supported features, and potential use in performance-critical domains such as game engines, data analytics, and scientific simulations. We analyzed the Vector API with practical test cases to measure its performance, focusing on features such as supported data types, operational flexibility, and the way older CPUs without appropriate SIMD support affect its efficiency. Our preliminary results demonstrate notable improvements in the performance of parallelizable tasks while also identifying limitations, including reliance on hardware SIMD support and reduced efficiency when fallback mechanisms are employed. The Vector API demonstrates how Java can leverage hardware-accelerated computations, allowing software engineers to achieve significant performance gains without requiring the use of low-level programming languages. The findings suggest that the Vector API effectively bridges the gap between hardware-accelerated computations and Java's highlevel programming model, providing a viable path for optimizing performance in specific use cases without requiring low-level programming expertise.