IBM's new product offering, Code Assistant for IBM Z, leverages a generative AI model to translate COBOL code to Java.

Java has a lot going for it, but it's not the top language for data science. Java professionals may want to familiarize themselves with Python or R for data science workflows.

For the first time in the history of TIOBE's index, Java has slipped out of the top two, leaving Python to occupy the spot behind reigning champion, C.

Python is tying with Java as the second most popular programming language behind JavaScript, according to developer analyst RedMonk's latest ranking.