Microsoft: No Windows rewrite in Rust, but research continues
A few days ago, a Microsoft manager was looking for personnel for the Rust porting of all C/C++ code – everything was to be converted by 2030.
(Image: iX)
A LinkedIn post by Microsoft manager Galen Hunt on LinkedIn attracted a lot of attention: By 2030, Microsoft wants to port all code to the programming language Rust, which is considered secure. For this purpose, Hunt was looking for a lead developer. The post further stated that artificial intelligence is also to be used in the porting process. Hunt indicated a target of one million lines of code to be converted per employee per month. This should be facilitated not only by AI but also by sophisticated algorithms.
The rumor quickly spread that Microsoft would rewrite Windows in Rust. This was not only denied by Hunt when he clarified his post. Frank X. Shaw, Chief Communications Officer at Microsoft, also spoke out in the US media. He also endeavored to contain the rumor. In his now updated LinkedIn post, Hunt explained that it was about a research project to facilitate the migration from one programming language to another.
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It is not new that Microsoft is increasingly using Rust. Some time ago, the company had already reported on its experiences with how drivers for the operating system can be created in Rust. In fact, Microsoft has already written graphics functions in the Windows kernel in Rust and included them in Windows 11 version 24H2. Other operating systems are also increasingly relying on the programming language. It is not surprising that the rumor of the Windows porting gained so much traction: Microsoft itself states that it is saving massively through the use of AI.
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