2024 Keynote, Amanda Rousseau: “Embracing an Adversarial Mindset for C++ Security”

 We’ve previously announced keynotes by Herb Sutter on what lies ahead for C++, Khalil Estell on Exceptions in Firmware, and by David Gross on going “ultrafast”.

We’re now pleased to announce the fourth of our five conference keynotes: Amanda Rousseau will be talking about a topic that is top of mind for anyone developing with C++, security. Amanda is an industry expert on malware and understanding ways to be robust against attacks. This talk is about taking the security fight to the threat actors and shouldn’t be missed by anyone who deploys software.

In Amanda’s own words:

Embracing an Adversarial Mindset for C++ Security

In an era where cybersecurity threats are ever-evolving, securing C++ applications has never been more critical. This keynote will explore how adopting an adversarial mindset can empower developers to proactively identify and mitigate vulnerabilities. We will delve into common C++ vulnerabilities, the “Rule of Two” security guidelines, and practical strategies for reducing attack surfaces and defending against attack vectors. Additionally, we will discuss recent trends in vulnerabilities, highlight bug bounty costs, and examine real-world examples of vulnerabilities exploited by threat actors. This talk will provide valuable insights into adopting an adversarial mindset and implementing robust security practices in your C++ projects.

Registration is open so don’t miss out on CppCon 2024 this September 15-20. Register today!

Bloomberg Platinum Level Sponsor of CppCon 2024

As one of the world’s leading financial services and technology companies, Bloomberg has been at the forefront of innovation and technological advancement for more than four decades. The firm’s platinum level sponsorship of CppCon 2024, the premier conference for the C++ programming language, represents a tangible commitment to and investment in the C++ community.

Bloomberg Engineering

CppCon, an annual conference organized by the Standard C++ Foundation, brings together some of the most influential experts and thought leaders in the C++ community. This year’s conference promises to be even more exciting with Bloomberg’s platinum level sponsorship.

The platinum level sponsorship represents a tangible investment in the C++ community. Bloomberg has pledged to support this year’s conference in several ways, including:

  1. Technical sessions: Bloomberg engineers will be presenting several technical sessions in the conference’s Main Program, covering topics such as best practices, performance optimization, and the latest advancements in C++ development. The speakers from Bloomberg will be sharing valuable insights and practical knowledge with CppCon attendees and, through our videos, the wider C++ community.

  2. Financial support: Bloomberg’s financial support will help ensure the continued success of CppCon, allowing the conference to grow and evolve to support the community in future years. This support will also enable the Standard C++ Foundation to continue its work supporting the C++ software developer community and promoting the understanding and use of modern Standard C++ on all compilers and platforms.

  3. Community engagement: Bloomberg’s team is supporting this year’s conference in an number of ways in addition to Main Program sessions, including lightning talks, co-leading a one-day workshop on presentation skills for our Main Program presenters, sponsoring and leading the Women’s Networking luncheon, and chairing the Tooling Track.

The platinum level sponsorship of CppCon 2024 is a testament to Bloomberg’s long-term commitment to the C++ community. By investing in the conference, it is demonstrating the firm’s ongoing dedication to the continued growth and success of the language. As the C++ community continues to evolve, Bloomberg’s support will be instrumental in shaping the future of the language and its applications.

2024 Keynote, David Gross: “When Nanoseconds Matter: Ultrafast Trading Systems in C++”

We’ve previously announced keynotes by Herb Sutter on what lies ahead for C++ and by Khalil Estell on Exceptions in Firmware.

We’re now pleased to announce the third of our five conference keynotes: David Gross will be talking about a topic that C++ excels at, speed. The ability to unlock the highest levels of performance from the underlying hardware is a topic every C++ practitioner discusses at some point in their career. This talk will be sure to incite discussion throughout the conference.

From David’s talk description:

When Nanoseconds Matter: Ultrafast Trading Systems in C++

In this talk, I will share industry insights on creating a low-latency trading system from the ground up. In the low-latency trading game, there is no silver bullet, but there is a lot of knowledge I can share after working in the industry for over a decade:

    • Optimizing Order Books for Speed: A deep dive into the mechanics of order books and techniques for enhancing their performance.
    • C++ Low-Latency Patterns: Explore common “tricks” and patterns in C++ that are widely adopted in the industry to achieve low latency.
    • Building a Scalable and Robust System: Principles and practices for designing a system that meets low latency requirements and is scalable and robust.

Registration is now open so don’t miss out on CppCon 2024 this September 15-20. Register today!

2024 Keynote, Khalil Estell: “C++ Exceptions for Smaller Firmware”

We’ve previously announced the Opening Keynote by Herb Sutter on what lies ahead for C++.

We’re now pleased to announce the second of our five conference keynotes: Khalil Estell will be talking about something that is often avoided—exceptions in an embedded environment. Khalil is a ISO C++ Committee Member and has extensive experience writing production firmware. His talk follows in the spirit of Herb’s talk where we look at the future and new perspectives of what C++ can offer the modern software developer.

From Khalil’s talk description:

C++ Exceptions for Smaller Firmware

For years, developers have overlooked a powerful tool for reducing binary size: C++ exceptions. Join me on a deep dive into the world of exceptions and discover how they can be harnessed to create more space efficient firmware. We’ll explore the requirements and best practices of embedded development, and show what is required to use exceptions in that environment. By the end of this talk, you’ll have a thorough understanding of how exceptions are handled, what their space costs are, and how exceptions compare to functional errors as values.

Registration is now open so don’t miss out on CppCon 2024 this September 15-20. Register today!

2024 opening keynote, Herb Sutter: “Peering forward — C++’s next decade”

We’re pleased to announce our opening conference keynote: Herb Sutter will be talking about ISO C++26 and onward and where it looks like we are heading in our near future. Herb’s talks regularly provoke conversations and are some of the most viewed on the CppCon channel, and this talk is set to deliver even more. Don’t miss it!

Here is a taste of the talk in Herb’s own words.

This is an exciting year for ISO C++: In just the past few months, it has started to become clear that C++ is approaching three major positive turning points that are starting to materialize together in a blossoming of usability we haven’t seen since C++11.

First, compile-time reflection, including source generation, will dominate the next decade of C++ as arguably the most powerful feature that we’ve ever standardized, and (fingers crossed!) it’s on track for being included in C++26 in the coming months. I expect reflection’s impact on library building to be comparable to that of all the other library-building improvements combined that we’ve added since C++98.

  • Related: The CppCon 2024 Friday keynote will be all about reflection… more about that will be announced soon!

Second, memory safety is being taken seriously in WG21. After a decade or two of gradual smaller improvements, the committee is actively working toward taking the major step of enabling well-known proven-effective safety checks at compile time by default, without compromising performance.

  • Related: The CppCon 2024 Monday evening panel and Wednesday keynote will be all about safety… more about those will be announced soon!

Third, simplifying C++ is being taken seriously. I’m not the only person actively proposing simplifications to C++, and I expect the rate of simplification proposal papers to increase again in the coming year as the fruits of in-the-field experiments turn into evidence that the experimental improvements are working and are ready to be considered for ISO C++ itself to benefit all programmers.

Most of all, the above overlap and reinforce each other. For example, reflection will enable writing more new facilities as compile-time libraries instead of as language features that have to be baked into a compiler, which helps simplify future language evolution. Reflection will also enable compile-time libraries that let developers express their intent directly and leave it to the library code to accurately generate correct implementations, which helps reduce errors and makes our code both simpler and safer.

ISO C++ has long been solidly in the top 5 programming languages and is going strong. This talk presents reasons to expect that C++’s future is bright, and that perhaps its most important decade is just ahead.

Registration is now open so don’t miss out on CppCon 2024 this September 15-20. Register today!

CppCon 2024 Program Announced

The Main Program schedule for CppCon 2024 is now live!

We’ll have over one hundred breakout sessions delivered onsite by the best C++ presenters in the industry, many returning from previous years as well as some exciting new voices. We will be announcing our five headline talks here in the coming days.

This year’s Main Program features a broad and deep general program. Within the program are seven dedicated topic tracks: The Back to Basics Track (sessions), the Embedded Track (sessions), the Robotics Track (sessions), the Scientific Computing Track (sessions), the Software Design Track (sessions), and Tooling Track (sessions) are back, and we have a new GameDev Track (sessions)! These “tracks” are to help find talks in specific areas, but as always, there are lots of talks not assigned to a specific track covering a wide variety of important topics.

In addition to the Main Program, we’ll have our annual Committee Fireside Chat, our poster competition, multiple sessions of lightning talks, Open Content talks, BOFs, exhibitors, social events, pre/post-conference classes, and most importantly of all, the informal “hallway track,” providing the opportunity to engage with professionals from across our industry.

Most of the program is published, but we are still working on a few surprises, so keep checking back to see any new additions or time slot adjustments.

We’d like to thank the Program Committee, our speakers, and the many professionals who proposed talks which we, unfortunately, just couldn’t squeeze in this year. Thank you for your hard work and enthusiastic support for this year’s program!

We hope to see you all in just over a month—so register now.

CppCon 2024 Attendance Support Ticket program

Again this year, CppCon is running an Attendance Support Ticket program. These free tickets are for people who would not be able to attend otherwise. This program is limited to conference tickets and doesn’t include support for transportation or lodging. This is an open program, but reasons to apply may include financial assistance, that you are part of an underrepresented group in tech, and others.

In order to apply for this program, please fill in the application form here. The application deadline is June 27, 2024. Decisions will be sent by July 1.

We look forward to seeing many of you again this year at CppCon 2024!

CppCon 2024 – Call for Volunteers

Volunteer at CppCon 2024!

Are you passionate about C++ and looking to dive deeper into the community? Whether you’re a seasoned developer, a student, or just passionate about technology, we welcome you to join us in bringing this dynamic C++ conference to life. This is your chance to experience the conference without the cost of registration.

What Does Volunteering Involve?
Volunteers play a crucial role in a variety of tasks. Some examples:

  • Assembling registration packets and badges
  • Assisting with speaker and attendee registration
  • Helping with audio/visual needs
  • Making session announcements
  • Managing information desks
  • Helping attendees with questions
  • And more!

Why Volunteer?
Volunteering at CppCon is a unique opportunity to:

  • Attend talks and sessions at no cost
  • Meet and interact with speakers and attendees
  • Gain a new perspective on how tech conferences operate
  • Contribute meaningfully to the C++ community

Whether you are attending a conference for the first time or are a seasoned attendee, volunteering offers a fresh and rewarding experience. You’ll have ample time to attend sessions, with at least half your volunteering time spent in them.

Availability:
We appreciate it if you are able to join us for several days, but even if you can only make it for a single day, there are opportunities for you. Volunteers available on the weekend prior to the conference can also assist with important preparatory tasks.

International Volunteers:
For those coming from outside the US, be sure to check our Visa Application Support page to ensure you have all the necessary information.

Volunteer Grants:
This year, we have a limited number of grants available to cover a portion of the traveling and/or lodging expenses for individuals who would otherwise not be able to attend. Apply for financial assistance by filling out the relevant sections of the application form below before July 26th.

Due to overwhelming interest, we are closing Volunteer Registration early. Thank you to the community for showing up to make CppCon the best C++ conference.

Ready to be part of something big? Complete the Volunteer Registration Form by August 16th.

Visit CppCon Volunteers to learn more or contact us directly at volunteer.chair@cppcon.org.

We look forward to having you join our volunteer team and contribute to an amazing CppCon 2024! 🌟

CppCon 2024 Call for Submissions – Embedded Track

The call for submissions for the Embedded Track at CppCon 2024 is now open! Check out the submissions page so you don’t miss your chance to share your team’s latest successes and discoveries in embedded software development!

CppCon’s Embedded Track is a meeting place where programmers specializing in embedded systems can come together with the larger C++ community to learn from each other.

Embedded systems is an increasingly broad area of computing, covering handheld devices, safety-critical systems like autonomous cars, and highly-specialized systems like satellites, not to mention the hardware devices used to build other computing systems. Possible topics include (but certainly aren’t limited to):

  • Working with real-time operating systems
  • Device drivers
  • Hardware simulation
  • Safety-critical systems
  • Techniques for improving execution time
  • Techniques for minimizing overhead
  • Unique security concerns (e.g., securing mobile devices)
  • C/C++ libraries focused on resource-constrained systems
  • Case studies and post-mortems on embedded systems

Submission deadline is May 19, 2024. Please remember to note that your submission is targeting the Embedded Track in the Comments section of the submission form.

Ben Saks

Embedded Track chair

CppCon 2024 Call for Submissions – Robotics Track

The Robotics Track at CppCon brings together practitioners of the multidisciplinary field to share their knowledge and experience with using C++ to build robots.

By attending this track, you’ll have an opportunity to join a community of like-minded individuals from robotics, controls, autonomous driving, AI, and Machine Learning who use C++ to drive developments in their fields.Collaborative robots

We invite submissions that showcase the use of C++ in a robotics context. Examples from last year include:

  • compile-time techniques for implementing kinematic chains
  • improving path planning performance through data structure optimization
  • exploring the implementation of a popular behavior tree library used in robotics

More examples can be seen from this playlist of last year’s track

This track is unlike academic conferences which typically require submission of an open source package or published work and is oriented towards practitioners sharing useful techniques, best practices, or interesting explorations of the language that powers everyday robots. Join us!

Remember to indicate your interest in the Robotics Track in the Comments Section of the submission form. The submission process can be found here.

Griswald Brooks and Tyler Weaver

Robotics Track co-chairs