Google Throws Weight Behind Swift for Server-Side Development

Google has released server-side support for Swift, a programming language developed by Apple that was initially designed for client-side use. After years of false starts, Swift is now being considered as a viable option for backend development due to its performance and ease of use.

The Google Cloud API Client Libraries for Swift target Swift 6.2+ and take advantage of SwiftNIO's asynchronous event loops, HTTP/2 multiplexing, gRPC transport, and data race safety compiler flags. This support is seen as a significant milestone in the development of Swift for server-side applications.

According to Karl Weinmeister and Carlos O'Ryan, developers at Google, Swift has matured into a viable systems and cloud language. They argue that it combines developer-friendliness with low-level control over resources, making it suitable for challenging systems languages like C++ or Rust.

The release of the Google Cloud API Client Libraries for Swift is seen as a boost to the Swift community, which has been working towards server-side adoption for years. Despite some setbacks, including IBM's reversal of its Swift commitment in 2019, the Swift Server Workgroup was launched in 2018 and continued to work on advancing the language for backend applications.