Node.JS had that ability for a while before it was incorporated in JavaScript with a feature called ‘modules.’ Eventually, they made it to the language itself and the browsers.

The modules in Node.js provide a simple and easy to use API that can be used for File I/O, Networking (using HTTP, TCP, UDP, etc protocols), extend the Node.js library and implement Cryptography ...

nvm, i think i figured it out! just had to debug a teeny tiny bit more. use import type { ... } from "kysely"; to import types in nodejs with type stripping. more info closing it now. sorgy Milk-Cool ...

Currently, modules must be recompiled to work with new versions of Node.js and the JavaScript engine, which traditionally has been Google’s V8 engine.

The list of Node.js 21 improvements includes, among others, an update of the V8 JavaScript engine to 11.8, stable WebStreams, a new experimental flag to flip module defaults ...