The automotive industry is on the verge of transformation–driven by the increasing presence of
electronics and software. As cars become sophisticated and connected, there’s a need for robust
and efficient programming languages.
Our CTO Surendra Kumar shares his thoughts on “The Potential of Rust in Transforming the
Automotive Industry.”
Read on to know more about this emerging programming language known for its safety and
performance.
Rust’s Journey into the Automotive Industry
Initially developed by Mozilla for web servers and system programming in Linux-based systems,
Rust gradually found its way into embedded systems. People began to recognize the advantages
of using it for automotive projects, primarily due to its statically-typed nature and the ability to
address memory-related issues during compile time.
Current State of Rust in Automotive Embedded Software
Despite the advantages, automakers have not (widely) embraced it yet. One reason for this is the
absence of a proper industry standard (at present). Additionally, commercial offerings for Rust in
the automotive industry are scarce, despite the abundance of open-source support.
Challenges and Opportunities
The programming language faces several hurdles in widespread adoption within the industry.
Many compiler tools do not support Rust, and silicon vendors are yet to provide drivers
specifically for Rust. Moreover, the debuggers commonly used in the automotive sector lack
native support for Rust, relying instead on assembly and C language.
Advantages
Despite these challenges, Rust offers unique advantages, making it an enticing choice for
automotive software development. Its statically typed nature and comprehensive memory
handling capabilities identify many potential errors during the compile time, eliminating the need
for a separate static analysis tool. Furthermore, Rust’s support for functional and object-oriented
programming brings new methods for designing automotive software.
The Road Ahead
Various experiments and validation are happening to increase the adoption of Rust in
automotive-embedded software.
The automotive industry is actively lobbying and advocating the inclusion of Rust–recognizing
the benefits it can offer in terms of safety, performance, and code reliability.
As the industry landscape leans toward software-centricity, exploring alternative programming
languages becomes essential. While challenges such as limited commercial offerings and lack of
widespread support persist, the ongoing advocacy and experimentation signify a promising future
for Rust in the automotive industry.
What do you think about the adoption of Rust in automotive? let us know in the comments
section.
There’s more to come. Stay tuned.