--- title: Why Rust Can't Replace C++ | daily.dev description: An argument that Rust is not replacing C++ in domains where C++ still dominates, such as high-frequency trading, GPU programming with CUDA, and game... canonical: https://daily.dev/posts/why-rust-can-t-replace-c--t831wukxe twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:site: @dailydotdev og:type: website og:site_name: daily.dev og:title: Why Rust Can't Replace C++ | daily.dev og:description: An argument that Rust is not replacing C++ in domains where C++ still dominates, such as high-frequency trading, GPU programming with CUDA, and game... og:url: https://daily.dev/posts/why-rust-can-t-replace-c--t831wukxe og:image: https://api.daily.dev/og/posts/T831WuKxE.png og:image:alt: Why Rust Can't Replace C++ og:image:width: 1200 og:image:height: 630 og:locale: en --- > ## Documentation Index > Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://daily.dev/llms.txt > Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further. # Why Rust Can't Replace C++ **[ForrestKnight](https://daily.dev/sources/fknight)** · 16 min read · 53 upvotes · 12 comments ## Summary An argument that Rust is not replacing C++ in domains where C++ still dominates, such as high-frequency trading, GPU programming with CUDA, and game development. Points to lock-free, intrusive data structure designs common in HFT that push Rust into unsafe code anyway, CUDA's C++-based production stack versus experimental Rust GPU efforts, and Unreal Engine's C++ core even at Rust-first studios like Embark. Also covers the C++ committee's internal split between Safe C++ and Profiles proposals, with Profiles delayed to C++29, while Herb Sutter notes C++ added as many new developers in a year as Rust has in total. ## Full article daily.dev links to this article rather than hosting it. Read it at the original source: ## Questions this post answers ### Why do high-frequency trading firms still choose C++ over Rust? Because C++ allows lock-free designs with intrusive data structures and raw pointer manipulation that Rust's borrow checker resists, forcing Rust code into unsafe blocks anyway. C++26 also standardizes lock-free tools like hazard pointers and RCU that HFT firms have hand-rolled for decades, and C++'s custom allocator API for arenas is more mature than Rust's, which has remained unstable for over a decade. _Anyone weighing Rust against C++ for latency-critical systems can track these tradeoffs as they evolve on daily.dev._ ### What happened to the C++ memory safety proposals, Safe C++ and Profiles? The C++ standards committee voted in September 2025 to prioritize the Profiles approach, championed by Bjarne Stroustrup and Herb Sutter, over Sean Baxter's Safe C++, which already had a working prototype. Profiles was targeted for C++26 but missed that release and got pushed to C++29, meaning it won't arrive until around 2029. _Developers tracking C++ memory safety timelines can follow standards progress like this on daily.dev._ ### How does Rust performance on GPUs compare to CUDA C++ for matrix multiplication? Nvidia's research arm published a project called Cubecl Rust where a Rust implementation of matrix multiplication reached 96% of cuBLAS performance on a B200 GPU, showing Rust can be fast on GPUs. However, this remains a research result rather than production-ready, while CUDA's C++ compiler, profiler, debugger, and decades of tuned kernels are fully production-hardened. _Engineers evaluating Rust versus CUDA C++ for GPU workloads can weigh results like this on daily.dev._ ## Community discussion Top comments from developers on daily.dev. **@documatic** · 16 upvotes > Use the best tool for the job. I've never understood the reason to just move everything to rust. **@andradei** · 6 upvotes > Good. Don't like writing C++ but props to them for modernizing the language. **@senhaj\_h** · 2 upvotes > rust won't Mojo probably will **@baz14** · 2 upvotes > You can't replace binary code😁 That's the base. Everything else is chosen based on the problems to be solved and the team's knowledge. Replacing means solving the same problems over and over again. That's impractical🤷 **@gtxpro1** · 1 upvotes >  --- Tags: [#performance](https://daily.dev/tags/performance), [#rust](https://daily.dev/tags/rust), [#c++](https://daily.dev/tags/c++), [#cuda](https://daily.dev/tags/cuda) [View this post on daily.dev](https://daily.dev/posts/why-rust-can-t-replace-c--t831wukxe) ```json {"@context":"https://schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https://daily.dev/#organization","name":"daily.dev","url":"https://daily.dev","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://daily.dev/apple-touch-icon.png","width":180,"height":180},"sameAs":["https://twitter.com/dailydotdev","https://github.com/dailydotdev","https://www.linkedin.com/company/daily-dev-ltd"]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https://daily.dev/#website","url":"https://daily.dev","name":"daily.dev","publisher":{"@id":"https://daily.dev/#organization"},"potentialAction":{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https://daily.dev/search?q={search_term_string}"},"query-input":"required name=search_term_string"}}]} {"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"TechArticle","headline":"Why Rust Can't Replace C++","url":"https://daily.dev/posts/why-rust-can-t-replace-c--t831wukxe","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://daily.dev/posts/why-rust-can-t-replace-c--t831wukxe"},"datePublished":"2026-09-02T13:42:24.012Z","dateModified":"2026-09-02T13:42:47.329Z","description":"An argument that Rust is not replacing C++ in domains where C++ still dominates, such as high-frequency trading, GPU programming with CUDA, and game...","image":"https://i.ytimg.com/vi/QNPwKMOQIKM/sddefault.jpg","thumbnailUrl":"https://i.ytimg.com/vi/QNPwKMOQIKM/sddefault.jpg","isAccessibleForFree":true,"articleSection":"ForrestKnight","inLanguage":"en","publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"daily.dev","url":"https://daily.dev","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://daily.dev/apple-touch-icon.png","width":180,"height":180}},"author":{"@type":"Organization","name":"ForrestKnight","logo":"https://media.daily.dev/image/upload/s--dRXNb2_3--/f_auto/v1745508651/logos/fknight","url":"https://daily.dev/sources/fknight"},"commentCount":12,"discussionUrl":"https://daily.dev/posts/why-rust-can-t-replace-c--t831wukxe","interactionStatistic":[{"@type":"InteractionCounter","interactionType":{"@type":"LikeAction"},"userInteractionCount":53},{"@type":"InteractionCounter","interactionType":{"@type":"CommentAction"},"userInteractionCount":12}],"keywords":"performance,rust,c++,cuda","timeRequired":"PT16M","video":{"@type":"VideoObject","name":"Why Rust Can't Replace C++","description":"An argument that Rust is not replacing C++ in domains where C++ still dominates, such as high-frequency trading, GPU programming with CUDA, and game...","thumbnailUrl":"https://i.ytimg.com/vi/QNPwKMOQIKM/sddefault.jpg","uploadDate":"2026-09-02T13:42:24.012Z","duration":"PT16M","url":"https://api.daily.dev/r/T831WuKxE","embedUrl":"https://www.youtube.com/embed/QNPwKMOQIKM"}} {"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https://daily.dev"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"ForrestKnight","item":"https://daily.dev/sources/fknight"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"name":"Why Rust Can't Replace C++"}]} {"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://daily.dev/posts/why-rust-can-t-replace-c--t831wukxe","comment":[{"@type":"Comment","text":"Use the best tool for the job. I’ve never understood the reason to just move everything to rust.","datePublished":"2026-09-02T17:20:10.715Z","url":"https://daily.dev/posts/T831WuKxE#c-k5CZmekpT","author":{"@type":"Person","name":"Mr U (Documatic)","url":"https://daily.dev/documatic","image":"https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/a-/AOh14GhbmnObF755_tWGu3J4INlhcielRSd1QxYtwHHJWg=s100"},"interactionStatistic":{"@type":"InteractionCounter","interactionType":{"@type":"LikeAction"},"userInteractionCount":16}},{"@type":"Comment","text":"Good. Don’t like writing C++ but props to them for modernizing the language.","datePublished":"2026-09-02T14:53:26.830Z","url":"https://daily.dev/posts/T831WuKxE#c-RgUOfvmKU","author":{"@type":"Person","name":"Isaac de Andrade","url":"https://daily.dev/andradei","image":"https://avatars.githubusercontent.com/u/2653546?v=4"},"interactionStatistic":{"@type":"InteractionCounter","interactionType":{"@type":"LikeAction"},"userInteractionCount":6}},{"@type":"Comment","text":"rust won’t Mojo probably will","datePublished":"2026-09-02T15:38:55.327Z","url":"https://daily.dev/posts/T831WuKxE#c-kTf2L9W56","author":{"@type":"Person","name":"Senhaji Rhazi hamza","url":"https://daily.dev/senhaj_h","image":"https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/a/AATXAJxigxfCGDdETwqvkUPaXFfSFnliXofXrwfLJ1Rj=s100"},"interactionStatistic":{"@type":"InteractionCounter","interactionType":{"@type":"LikeAction"},"userInteractionCount":2}},{"@type":"Comment","text":"You can’t replace binary code😁 That’s the base. Everything else is chosen based on the problems to be solved and the team’s knowledge. Replacing means solving the same problems over and over again. That’s impractical🤷","datePublished":"2026-09-05T06:46:09.148Z","url":"https://daily.dev/posts/T831WuKxE#c-yF35vB6HB","author":{"@type":"Person","name":"Baz","url":"https://daily.dev/baz14","image":"https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/a/ACg8ocKd2iFU8YS4sV-rBJptuYSF8EHeQnm23N_dcXE1uON7_GMIlZg=s96-c"},"interactionStatistic":{"@type":"InteractionCounter","interactionType":{"@type":"LikeAction"},"userInteractionCount":2}},{"@type":"Comment","text":"","datePublished":"2026-09-07T09:24:55.283Z","url":"https://daily.dev/posts/T831WuKxE#c-UntRHOOKE","author":{"@type":"Person","name":"NguyenDat","url":"https://daily.dev/gtxpro1","image":"https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/a-/AOh14Gj6dJn9PAc86GicePx7UzdLxzXxJXuU3IjYkyK4=s100"},"interactionStatistic":{"@type":"InteractionCounter","interactionType":{"@type":"LikeAction"},"userInteractionCount":1}}]} {"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"FAQPage","@id":"https://daily.dev/posts/why-rust-can-t-replace-c--t831wukxe#faq","mainEntity":[{"@type":"Question","name":"Why do high-frequency trading firms still choose C++ over Rust?","acceptedAnswer":{"@type":"Answer","text":"Because C++ allows lock-free designs with intrusive data structures and raw pointer manipulation that Rust's borrow checker resists, forcing Rust code into unsafe blocks anyway. 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