“Systems programming” is a category of programming that requires high speed, demanded by such applications as operating systems, network servers, and databases. For many years, and even today, C is the go-to programming language for such work — but over the years, a growing number of other languages have been joining this space, most notably C++, and more recently D, Go, and Rust. What do each of these languages have to offer, and what do the languages’ designers prioritize in their designs? This panel brings together Bjarne Stroustrup (C++), Rob Pike (Go), Andrei Alexandrescu (D), and Niko Matsakis (Rust) to discuss what they think about programming languages, language design, community, and future directions.