Mitchell Hashimoto contributed a PR to simdutf that enables the library to be built without depending on libc++ or libc++abi. The work involved two main challenges: replacing STL types with a custom stl_compat.h header for NO_LIBCXX mode, and eliminating hidden libc++abi dependencies caused by C++ ABI features like function-local statics, pure virtual tables, and thread-safe initialization guards. A CI audit script was added to prevent regressions. The change benefits portability to embedded, WebAssembly, and freestanding environments, reduces binary size, and simplifies static linking. Ghostty has already adopted the change, removing libc++ and libc++abi from libghostty-vt entirely. The PR to simdutf is still under review, but a fork is available in the meantime.
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The Benefits of Not Depending on libc++libc++ vs libc++abiExtricating simdutf from libc++Extricating simdutf from libc++abiValidationPull RequestFinal StatusFootnotesSort: