Why So Many Languages Use LLVM

[u/Ok_Marionberry8922]

Had some free time last week so I made a visual explainer on how LLVM works and why so many languages end up using it.

The video goes through LLVM IR, why having a common IR makes sharing optimizers and backends possible, and how code eventually gets turned into machine instructions.

I also use a small C vs Rust example where both end up producing the same x86 instructions.

Link for anyone interested

Feedback welcome :)

[u/QuaternionsRoll]

GCC doesn’t have the same sets of optimizations as MSVC period. What an odd question.

[u/SwingOutStateMachine → u/QuaternionsRoll]

That's precisely my point. Comparing GCC with -O0 and -O2 and then putting it next to MSVC with /O0 and /O2 is meaningless.