In my previous article, I discussed the current reality of Core Data in today's projects: it hasn't disappeared, and it still has unique value, but the disconnect between it and modern Swift projects is becoming increasingly apparent. In this article, I will introduce my experimental project Core Data Evolution, exploring whether we can make Core Data continue to exist in modern Swift projects in a more natural way?

Fatbobman

Core Data Evolution (CDE) is an experimental Swift library that modernizes Core Data development without replacing it. It introduces SwiftData-style macro-based model declarations via @PersistentModel, type-safe predicate building with TypedPath (supporting persistent name aliasing), actor-based concurrency isolation via @NSModelActor, and improved testing utilities including runtime schema generation and per-test SQLite stores. CDE keeps .xcdatamodeld as the production model source while adding a modern Swift expression layer on top. A companion CLI tool (cde-tool) handles code generation, validation, and alignment between model files and source declarations. The project also integrates with PersistentHistoryTrackingKit and iCloudSyncStatusKit for a complete modern Core Data stack.

An Attempt to Make Core Data Feel More Like Modern Swift

Other Pieces of the Core Data Modernization Puzzle