DARPA project for automated translation from C to Rust (2024)
11 hours ago
- #DARPA
- #Rust
- #Memory Safety
- DARPA launches the TRACTOR program to automate the translation of legacy C code to Rust, aiming to eliminate memory safety vulnerabilities.
- Memory safety issues in C arise from direct memory manipulation and undefined behaviors, leading to prevalent software vulnerabilities.
- The software engineering community agrees that bug-finding tools are insufficient, advocating for proactive solutions like memory-safe languages.
- Rust, a memory-safe language, is gaining traction, but rewriting vast amounts of legacy C code at scale remains a challenge.
- TRACTOR seeks to improve automated C-to-Rust translation using novel combinations of software analysis and large language models (LLMs).
- Public competitions will test LLM-powered solutions, aiming for translations that match the quality of skilled Rust developers.
- Rust's strict rules act as guardrails, ensuring memory safety and allowing developers to focus on higher-level concerns.
- DARPA will host a Proposers Day on Aug. 26, 2024, for interested participants to learn more about the TRACTOR program.