Chris Lattner (born 1978) is an American software engineer known for creating LLVM and Swift. His work on compiler technology has enabled new programming languages and improved development tools across the industry.
Creating LLVM
Lattner started LLVM at the University of Illinois as a research project on lifelong program optimization. What began as a research compiler grew into infrastructure used by countless projects.
Apple and Swift
Apple hired Lattner in 2005, where he led the Clang project (LLVM’s C/C++ compiler). He then designed Swift, announced in 2014, which replaced Objective-C as Apple’s primary language.
Philosophy
Lattner emphasizes practical compiler engineering:
- Modular, reusable components
- Great error messages and developer experience
- Balance between safety and control
- Open-source development
Post-Apple Career
After Apple, Lattner worked at:
- Tesla: Autopilot software
- Google: TensorFlow and Swift for TensorFlow
- SiFive: RISC-V tooling
- Modular: AI infrastructure
Impact
Lattner’s work shapes modern development:
- LLVM underpins Rust, Swift, Julia, and more
- Clang improved C/C++ development experience
- Swift modernized Apple platform development
- Demonstrated that one person can build fundamental infrastructure