AOT Compilation
In plain terms
Compiling code to native machine code before running.
Going deeper
Ahead-Of-Time compilation translates code into native binaries during the build, so no compilation happens at runtime. It front-loads the work for fast startup.
Under the hood
Faster startup and predictable performance than JIT, but less runtime optimization; used by GraalVM native images.
Examples
GraalVM native images, C/C++/Rust, Angular AOT, fast startup, embedded.
Think of it like...
Like fully translating a book before publishing so readers never wait.