UCSD Pascal used the p-machine to be machine&#x2F;architecture independent.  All the way back in 1978.  [edit: a quick google suggests the p-machine was based on original work circa. 1966]<p>While not the JVM, using a virtual processor setup as a target for portability was a really old concept by the time Java or the .NET CLR came along.<p>Newer approaches add new concepts or take advantage of new technologies, but it&#x27;s never revolutionary.