C++ 23 language standard declared feature-complete

C++23, a planned update to the popular programming language, is now fully featured, with capabilities such as standard library module support. A later version is on the horizon, called C++ 26.

The ISO C++ Committee in early February completed technical work on the C++ 23 specification and is producing a final document for a preliminary approval vote, Herb Sutter, committee chair, said in a February 13 blog post. The standard library module is expected to improve compilation.

Other features programmed for C++23 include simplifying implicit move, fixing temporals in range, multidimensional, and static loops. operator[]and Unicode enhancements. Also featured static constexpr in constexpr features The full list of features can be found at cppreference.com.

Many C++23 features have already been implemented in major compilers and libraries, Sutter said. Meanwhile, a planned C++26 release of the language is scheduled to emphasize concurrency and parallelism. Stacked coroutines are also assigned for C++ 26, according to a February 20 blog post by ISO C++ committee member Antony Poluhkin.

Approvals for C++26 features are expected to begin in June. Also being sought after C++23 is work on contracts and SIMD execution, as well as a general improvement in security and protection. C++23 has been dubbed the “pandemic edition” of the language, and it was worked on during that ordeal. The predecessor C++20 was completed in February 2020, with final technical approval in September of that year.

Founded in 1979, C++ was recently named Tiobe Programming Language of the Year for 2022 by the Tiobe Language Popularity Index. A recent criticism of the memory security of C++ and the predecessor C language by the US National Security Agency drew a sharp rebuke from C++ designer Bjarne Stroustrup. Stroustrup praised the use of the C++ language in applications such as artificial intelligence/machine learning, aerospace, and biomedical.