C++ runs the systems the world depends on. We keep it moving forward through developer education, fiscal sponsorship of Boost and EDG, WG21 proposals and implementations, and upstream work on the Clang and GCC front ends. The goal: safer, modern C++ in every developer’s hands.
From the C++ Alliance
News from the Alliance: educational resources, library releases, tooling, compiler work, and the community efforts that keep C++ infrastructure robust.
EDG is now open source. Here’s what comes next.
On September 30, 2026, EDG made its source code public, and selected the C++ Alliance as its fiscal sponsorship partner.
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Every developer deserves world class tools...
Every critical system deserves secure code. Every good idea deserves the resources to ship. As a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, we fund and staff the libraries, tools, and compiler work millions of developers rely on. We run the world’s largest C++ Slack workspace, sponsor education at CppCon and conferences worldwide, and open pathways for new contributors. This is what we’re building.
The State of C++
Global Usage & Growth
C++ powers the world's most demanding software: operating systems, game engines, trading platforms, and embedded devices. The global C++ developer population reached 16.3 million in 2025, up 73% from 9.4 million in 2022 (SlashData).
16.3M
C++ developers worldwide (2025)
73%
Growth since 2022 (from 9.4M)
The Challenges We Face
Resources & Sustainability
World class libraries are maintained by volunteers who deserve real support. Learning material is scattered. Promising C++ projects go unbuilt because talented developers lack the resources to finish them.
Safety & Security
Memory-safety bugs put hospitals, power grids, and financial systems at risk. C++ has to prove performance and safety aren’t a trade-off, with safer patterns, better tooling, and compilers that enforce them.
Access & Opportunity
C++ teaches how machines really work and opens careers worldwide. But the language has moved through C++17, C++20, and C++23 faster than teaching material and tooling, and newcomers pay the price.
We’re a team of C++ leaders, expert engineers, and technology veterans, united by a commitment to open source contribution. Together we maintain and create libraries, build developer tooling and educational resources, contribute to compilers, and help shape the future of the language.
Meet our staff
Make C++ accessible, safer, and more powerful for everyone. From students discovering computer architecture to engineers building the infrastructure the world depends on.
Boost C++ Libraries
Peer reviewed libraries shouldn’t run on volunteer hours alone. As Boost’s fiscal sponsor and primary supporter, we fund staff engineers who maintain core libraries and modernize the project’s infrastructure.
EDG
EDG’s C++ front end powers tools developers use every day. When EDG went open source in September 2026, it chose the C++ Alliance as its fiscal sponsor. The clarity of the code and documentation make it ideal for developers who want to learn about compilers.
wg21.org
Standards work should be visible to everyone who writes C++. Paper search, filters, abstracts, and GitHub cross-links in one place. Independent; not affiliated with ISO.
MrDocs
Documentation tooling hasn’t kept pace with modern C++. MrDocs is built on Clang/LLVM and understands templates, constraints, and overloads, so your docs match the code you actually wrote. mrdocs.com
Compiler Development
A language feature only matters once developers can use it. Alliance engineers contribute upstream to Clang/LLVM and strengthen the wider front end ecosystem, including GCC and EDG, so new features ship sooner. We also sponsor a global compiler research fellowship for college students majoring in C++ development.
What we are investing in next: safer C++, clearer access to standards work, the next generation of compiler contributors, the story of Boost, and stewardship of a critical C++ front end.
Safer C++
Opt-in compiler guarantees (Profiles) so libraries and applications can rule out whole classes of memory and undefined behavior bugs without giving up the performance C++ is known for.
wg21.org
Keep improving the public window into WG21: better search, clearer paper discovery, and tools that help developers follow the standard as it evolves.
Compiler Research Fellowship
A mentor driven fellowship that places emerging engineers on real upstream Clang/LLVM work. Public contributions, guided by experts, funded by the Alliance.
Boost Documentary
A feature length film about the people, craft, and history behind Boost, so the next generation can see how peer reviewed libraries and community stewardship actually work.
Open Source EDG
EDG's C++ front end quietly powers tools developers already use. Now that it's open source, the Alliance is helping ensure this critical piece of the compiler ecosystem continues to live and improve in public.
Given the existence of Standard C++ Foundation and Software Freedom Conservancy, why was it necessary to form The C++ Alliance as a new, separate legal entity?
While the missions of Standard C++ Foundation and The C++ Alliance are similar and overlapping, they have different status under tax law. The Foundation is organized as a 501(c)(6) organization, a trade group. In addition to providing legal protection for companies to work together in ways that might otherwise be viewed as industrial "collusion," a trade group can accept tax-deductible dues from member companies. The Alliance is organized as a 501(c)(3) organization, a charity which can accept tax deductible contributions from the general public.
Although the tax status of Software Freedom Conservancy and The C++ Alliance are similar, their missions and concerns are different. There is mission overlap. Conservancy, whose mission is to support the development of FLOSS libraries, supports the Boost Libraries project, which would also be within the mission of The Alliance, but The Alliance has both a narrower and a broader mission. While Conservancy is language agnostic and is focused on software development, The Alliance is focused exclusively on the C++ environment and is free to support non-FLOSS projects such as language proposals, books, education materials, tools, or other projects which may not be software or may have non-FLOSS licensing.
It is also the case that The C++ Alliance is not a good fit as a Conservancy project. It is appropriate for small non-proprietary projects to pool their resources to provide themselves with financial, legal, accounting, and other services for which they have a common need and for which they may, individually, be too small to economically procure. Although the Alliance will be promoting library development, it doesn't have the same requirements as a FLOSS software producer, so would need different services than your typical Conservancy project and has sufficient endowment to fund the services that it will require.