Since the end of November, I’ve been working full time on a new Solidity compiler written in rust, called Solang. Back in March 2019, I decided to prototype an idea: write a new Solidity compiler from scratch using llvm and rust. The prototype worked fine and I managed to get it integrated with Hyperledger Burrow; I was working at Monax at that time.

The existing Solidity Smart Contracts compiler has a number of problems. It’s a huge inscrutable C++ code base, and the language has all sorts of weird limitations. By starting from scratch we create a compiler which does not have these limitations. By using using llvm, we can also generate more optimal code. Lastly we can target different blockchains, not just ethereum.

I applied for a grant from the Web3 Foundation, and it was accepted. The grant covers language parity with the Ethereum Foundation Solidity compiler. So, over the next year, I’ll be working on Solang full time.