diff --git a/compiler/rustc_middle/src/lib.rs b/compiler/rustc_middle/src/lib.rs
index f2acc601d4f62..90bdf630d062d 100644
--- a/compiler/rustc_middle/src/lib.rs
+++ b/compiler/rustc_middle/src/lib.rs
@@ -23,6 +23,7 @@
 //! This API is completely unstable and subject to change.
 
 #![doc(html_root_url = "https://doc.rust-lang.org/nightly/nightly-rustc/")]
+#![feature(allocator_api)]
 #![feature(array_windows)]
 #![feature(assert_matches)]
 #![feature(backtrace)]
@@ -33,6 +34,7 @@
 #![feature(discriminant_kind)]
 #![feature(never_type)]
 #![feature(extern_types)]
+#![feature(new_uninit)]
 #![feature(nll)]
 #![feature(once_cell)]
 #![feature(min_specialization)]
diff --git a/compiler/rustc_middle/src/mir/interpret/allocation.rs b/compiler/rustc_middle/src/mir/interpret/allocation.rs
index a29b42b45df37..5964efa78e9e9 100644
--- a/compiler/rustc_middle/src/mir/interpret/allocation.rs
+++ b/compiler/rustc_middle/src/mir/interpret/allocation.rs
@@ -28,7 +28,7 @@ use crate::ty;
 pub struct Allocation<Tag = AllocId, Extra = ()> {
     /// The actual bytes of the allocation.
     /// Note that the bytes of a pointer represent the offset of the pointer.
-    bytes: Vec<u8>,
+    bytes: Box<[u8]>,
     /// Maps from byte addresses to extra data for each pointer.
     /// Only the first byte of a pointer is inserted into the map; i.e.,
     /// every entry in this map applies to `pointer_size` consecutive bytes starting
@@ -112,7 +112,7 @@ impl<Tag> Allocation<Tag> {
         align: Align,
         mutability: Mutability,
     ) -> Self {
-        let bytes = slice.into().into_owned();
+        let bytes = Box::<[u8]>::from(slice.into());
         let size = Size::from_bytes(bytes.len());
         Self {
             bytes,
@@ -131,8 +131,7 @@ impl<Tag> Allocation<Tag> {
     /// Try to create an Allocation of `size` bytes, failing if there is not enough memory
     /// available to the compiler to do so.
     pub fn uninit(size: Size, align: Align, panic_on_fail: bool) -> InterpResult<'static, Self> {
-        let mut bytes = Vec::new();
-        bytes.try_reserve(size.bytes_usize()).map_err(|_| {
+        let bytes = Box::<[u8]>::try_new_zeroed_slice(size.bytes_usize()).map_err(|_| {
             // This results in an error that can happen non-deterministically, since the memory
             // available to the compiler can change between runs. Normally queries are always
             // deterministic. However, we can be non-determinstic here because all uses of const
@@ -146,7 +145,8 @@ impl<Tag> Allocation<Tag> {
             });
             InterpError::ResourceExhaustion(ResourceExhaustionInfo::MemoryExhausted)
         })?;
-        bytes.resize(size.bytes_usize(), 0);
+        // SAFETY: the box was zero-allocated, which is a valid initial value for Box<[u8]>
+        let bytes = unsafe { bytes.assume_init() };
         Ok(Allocation {
             bytes,
             relocations: Relocations::new(),
diff --git a/library/alloc/src/boxed.rs b/library/alloc/src/boxed.rs
index 53bfe02d0e7a3..722168523763a 100644
--- a/library/alloc/src/boxed.rs
+++ b/library/alloc/src/boxed.rs
@@ -157,7 +157,6 @@ use crate::alloc::{handle_alloc_error, WriteCloneIntoRaw};
 use crate::alloc::{AllocError, Allocator, Global, Layout};
 #[cfg(not(no_global_oom_handling))]
 use crate::borrow::Cow;
-#[cfg(not(no_global_oom_handling))]
 use crate::raw_vec::RawVec;
 #[cfg(not(no_global_oom_handling))]
 use crate::str::from_boxed_utf8_unchecked;
@@ -589,6 +588,71 @@ impl<T> Box<[T]> {
     pub fn new_zeroed_slice(len: usize) -> Box<[mem::MaybeUninit<T>]> {
         unsafe { RawVec::with_capacity_zeroed(len).into_box(len) }
     }
+
+    /// Constructs a new boxed slice with uninitialized contents. Returns an error if
+    /// the allocation fails
+    ///
+    /// # Examples
+    ///
+    /// ```
+    /// #![feature(allocator_api, new_uninit)]
+    ///
+    /// let mut values = Box::<[u32]>::try_new_uninit_slice(3)?;
+    /// let values = unsafe {
+    ///     // Deferred initialization:
+    ///     values[0].as_mut_ptr().write(1);
+    ///     values[1].as_mut_ptr().write(2);
+    ///     values[2].as_mut_ptr().write(3);
+    ///     values.assume_init()
+    /// };
+    ///
+    /// assert_eq!(*values, [1, 2, 3]);
+    /// # Ok::<(), std::alloc::AllocError>(())
+    /// ```
+    #[unstable(feature = "allocator_api", issue = "32838")]
+    #[inline]
+    pub fn try_new_uninit_slice(len: usize) -> Result<Box<[mem::MaybeUninit<T>]>, AllocError> {
+        unsafe {
+            let layout = match Layout::array::<mem::MaybeUninit<T>>(len) {
+                Ok(l) => l,
+                Err(_) => return Err(AllocError),
+            };
+            let ptr = Global.allocate(layout)?;
+            Ok(RawVec::from_raw_parts_in(ptr.as_mut_ptr() as *mut _, len, Global).into_box(len))
+        }
+    }
+
+    /// Constructs a new boxed slice with uninitialized contents, with the memory
+    /// being filled with `0` bytes. Returns an error if the allocation fails
+    ///
+    /// See [`MaybeUninit::zeroed`][zeroed] for examples of correct and incorrect usage
+    /// of this method.
+    ///
+    /// # Examples
+    ///
+    /// ```
+    /// #![feature(allocator_api, new_uninit)]
+    ///
+    /// let values = Box::<[u32]>::try_new_zeroed_slice(3)?;
+    /// let values = unsafe { values.assume_init() };
+    ///
+    /// assert_eq!(*values, [0, 0, 0]);
+    /// # Ok::<(), std::alloc::AllocError>(())
+    /// ```
+    ///
+    /// [zeroed]: mem::MaybeUninit::zeroed
+    #[unstable(feature = "allocator_api", issue = "32838")]
+    #[inline]
+    pub fn try_new_zeroed_slice(len: usize) -> Result<Box<[mem::MaybeUninit<T>]>, AllocError> {
+        unsafe {
+            let layout = match Layout::array::<mem::MaybeUninit<T>>(len) {
+                Ok(l) => l,
+                Err(_) => return Err(AllocError),
+            };
+            let ptr = Global.allocate_zeroed(layout)?;
+            Ok(RawVec::from_raw_parts_in(ptr.as_mut_ptr() as *mut _, len, Global).into_box(len))
+        }
+    }
 }
 
 impl<T, A: Allocator> Box<[T], A> {