2025 was another great year for C++. It shows in the numbers Before we dive into the data (below), let’s put the most important question up front: From 2022 to 2025, why are C++ and Rust the fastest-growing major programming languages? Primarily, it’s because throughout the history of computing, “software taketh away faster than hardware…

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C++ and Rust are the fastest-growing major programming languages from 2022 to 2025, driven by computing demand consistently outpacing hardware supply. Power and chips are the two biggest constraints on computing growth, making performance-per-watt efficiency critical. C++ continues evolving with C++26 adding significant security improvements including bounds-checking in the standard library, elimination of undefined behavior from uninitialized variables, and functional safety via contracts. Despite concerns about safety and AI replacing programmers, the global developer population grew 50% to 47 million, with C++ adding roughly as many developers in one year as Rust has total worldwide. AI serves as an accelerator tool rather than replacement, with major tech companies continuing to aggressively hire human programmers.

Software taketh away faster than hardware giveth: Why C++ programmers keep growing fast despite competition, safety, and AI

The world’s two biggest computing constraints in 2025

The data in 2025: Programming keeps growing by leaps and bounds, and C++ is growing faster

Safety (type/memory safety, functional safety) and security

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What are the two biggest constraints on computing growth in 2025? What’s in shortest supply?
“power and chips”
</blockquote>
Have you heard about the RAM availability crisis and its prices skyrocketing? I think that should be in that list as well.

I cannot wait to see AI bros try to vibe-code memory-safe C++ programs