From 12f1966f0660e016a2121091f2f2a23dd67ad625 Mon Sep 17 00:00:00 2001
From: Malte Ubl <malte@vercel.com>
Date: Fri, 9 Oct 2026 05:09:03 -0700
Subject: [PATCH] Borrow constant aliases created by checked casts

`const x = a as LiteralType` lowers to a ternary whose failing arm always
throws and whose successful arm narrows and casts the unchanged source.
The alias projects the same stable owner, so it can borrow like a plain
copy of the binding instead of retaining at the declaration and releasing
at scope exit. Call arguments of the same shape borrow too.

tsc-ts's sameLiteralValue (two casts per call, on the relation hot path)
loses all of its reference counting.
---
 packages/compiler/src/backend/llvm/emitter.ts | 12 ++++
 .../test/ts7/baselines/order-parity.json      |  6 ++
 tests/corpus/4544-checked-cast-aliases.ts     | 71 +++++++++++++++++++
 3 files changed, 89 insertions(+)
 create mode 100644 tests/corpus/4544-checked-cast-aliases.ts

diff --git a/packages/compiler/src/backend/llvm/emitter.ts b/packages/compiler/src/backend/llvm/emitter.ts
index 3c7cccd5c..a084e9910 100644
--- a/packages/compiler/src/backend/llvm/emitter.ts
+++ b/packages/compiler/src/backend/llvm/emitter.ts
@@ -5124,6 +5124,18 @@ export class LlEmitter {
     if (wrap === "unit") return true;
     if (wrap === "ref" && value.kind === "unionWrap")
       return this.canBorrowCallArgument(value.value);
+    // Checked casts (`x as C`, `x!` on a nullable) lower to a ternary whose
+    // failing arm always throws; the successful arm projects the same
+    // stable owner. The throwing arm's typed dummy owns nothing.
+    if (value.kind === "unionNarrow") return this.canBorrowCallArgument(value.value);
+    if (value.kind === "libCall") return value.fn === "error.nodeThrow";
+    if (value.kind === "ternary")
+      return (
+        this.canBorrowReceiver(value.then) &&
+        this.canBorrowReceiver(value.else_) &&
+        this.canBorrowCallArgument(value.then) &&
+        this.canBorrowCallArgument(value.else_)
+      );
     if (value.kind !== "varRef") return false;
     const binding = this.binding(value.localId);
     return (
diff --git a/packages/compiler/test/ts7/baselines/order-parity.json b/packages/compiler/test/ts7/baselines/order-parity.json
index 26697a57f..baab306da 100644
--- a/packages/compiler/test/ts7/baselines/order-parity.json
+++ b/packages/compiler/test/ts7/baselines/order-parity.json
@@ -15604,6 +15604,12 @@
     "<repo>/tests/corpus/4542-preserving-call-borrows.ts"
    ],
    "diags": []
+  },
+  "<repo>/tests/corpus/4544-checked-cast-aliases.ts": {
+   "order": [
+    "<repo>/tests/corpus/4544-checked-cast-aliases.ts"
+   ],
+   "diags": []
   }
  }
 }
diff --git a/tests/corpus/4544-checked-cast-aliases.ts b/tests/corpus/4544-checked-cast-aliases.ts
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..5e33046fe
--- /dev/null
+++ b/tests/corpus/4544-checked-cast-aliases.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,71 @@
+// Constant aliases created by checked casts (`x as Sub`, a narrowed
+// nullable) of unchanged parameters and locals borrow their source. The
+// source binding keeps the object alive even when everything else that
+// referenced it is dropped while the alias is in use.
+
+class Type {
+  flags: number;
+  constructor(flags: number) {
+    this.flags = flags;
+  }
+}
+
+class LiteralType extends Type {
+  value: number;
+  text: string;
+  constructor(flags: number, value: number, text: string) {
+    super(flags);
+    this.value = value;
+    this.text = text;
+  }
+}
+
+class Holder {
+  item: Type | undefined;
+  constructor(item: Type | undefined) {
+    this.item = item;
+  }
+}
+
+function sameLiteral(a: Type, b: Type): boolean {
+  const x = a as LiteralType;
+  const y = b as LiteralType;
+  if ((a.flags & 1) !== 0) return x.value === y.value || (x.value !== x.value && y.value !== y.value);
+  return x.text === y.text;
+}
+
+// The alias outlives every other reference the program held.
+function aliasAcrossDrop(a: Type, drop: () => void): string {
+  const x = a as LiteralType;
+  drop();
+  const fresh = new LiteralType(3, 99, "fresh");
+  return x.text + ":" + x.value + ":" + fresh.text;
+}
+
+function narrowAlias(holder: Holder): string {
+  const item = holder.item;
+  if (item === undefined) return "none";
+  const literal = item as LiteralType;
+  holder.item = undefined;
+  const fresh = new LiteralType(5, 7, "replacement");
+  return literal.text + "/" + fresh.text;
+}
+
+const items: Type[] = [
+  new LiteralType(1, 1, "one"),
+  new LiteralType(1, 1, "uno"),
+  new LiteralType(2, 2, "two"),
+  new LiteralType(2, 3, "two"),
+  new LiteralType(1, NaN, "nan"),
+];
+console.log(sameLiteral(items[0], items[1]), sameLiteral(items[2], items[3]), sameLiteral(items[4], items[4]));
+
+const holder = new Holder(new LiteralType(2, 42, "held"));
+console.log(
+  aliasAcrossDrop(holder.item!, () => {
+    holder.item = undefined;
+  }),
+  holder.item === undefined,
+);
+const holder2 = new Holder(new LiteralType(2, 8, "narrowed"));
+console.log(narrowAlias(holder2), narrowAlias(holder2));