what's new for swift this year

This year, there are several exciting updates for Swift, marking its 10th anniversary. Here are the key highlights:

1. Swift 6 Language Mode:

   • Data Race Safety: Swift 6 introduces a new language mode that provides data race safety guarantees, making concurrent programming safer by diagnosing data races at compile time. This is a significant step forward in ensuring the correctness of concurrent programs.
   • Non-Copyable Types: Swift 6 introduces non-copyable types, which can help optimize performance and memory usage by preventing unnecessary copies of data.
   • Embedded Swift: A new language subset called Embedded Swift is introduced, which can run on highly constrained systems, expanding the reach of Swift to more platforms.

2. Swift Project Update:

   • The Swift project will be moving to a new organization on GitHub, swiftlang, which will include the Swift Compiler foundation and many more Swift ecosystem packages. This move aims to foster better community collaboration and project management.

3. Swift's Evolution and Community:

   • The Swift community continues to grow, with new packages and contributions being highlighted regularly. The community's involvement is crucial in driving the language forward.

4. Cross-Platform Development:

   • Swift continues to expand its cross-platform capabilities, with official support on Apple platforms, Linux, and Windows. This makes Swift a versatile choice for developers working on diverse platforms.

5. SwiftUI Enhancements:

   • SwiftUI has gained numerous customizations and improvements, making it easier to build user interfaces with less code. New features include custom containers, mesh gradients, and scrolling customizations.

6. Swift Assist:

   • A new tool called Swift Assist will be available later this year, aimed at improving the developer experience with predictive completion and other enhancements.

For more detailed information, you can watch the session What’s new in Swift starting at 17:03.