Google has provided a grant of $1 million to the Rust Foundation to improve the interaction between code written in Rust and code written in C++. This investment is expected to expand the use of Rust in various components of the Android platform.
According to Google’s security blog, there are tools available to ensure compatibility between C++ and Rust, such as cxx, autocxx, bindgen, CBINDGEN, diplomat, and Crubit. These tools help reduce barriers and speed up the implementation of the Rust language. While these tools have been primarily focused on individual projects or companies, this grant aims to accelerate the adoption of Rust industry-wide.
The Rust Foundation, formed in 2021 with the participation of AWS, Huawei, Google, Microsoft, and Mozilla, is responsible for overseeing the Rust ecosystem, supporting major initiatives, making decisions, and organizing project financing. With the funds received from this grant, the Rust Foundation plans to hire developers who will work full-time to improve compatibility between Rust and C++. Additionally, resources will be allocated to further develop existing projects related to code compatibility.