Swift in business

First of all… We believe in Swift — it’s the inspiration behind our company name and project references.

In today’s rapidly evolving digital landscape, selecting the appropriate programming language is crucial for businesses aiming to develop applications that last. They also need to be efficient in multiple ways. For companies targeting the Apple ecosystem, Swift has emerged as a premier choice.

The Swift programming language, introduced by Apple in 2014, is known for its intuitive and reliable design.

Leading our efforts is Tibor Bödecs, an enthusiastic Swift evangelist and technology leader of Binary Birds. He is a senior software developer specializing in Swift on the server and he is also the author of “Practical Server Side Swift,” providing a comprehensive guide to the Vapor framework. This article explores the business advantages of adopting Swift for new or existing development projects.

How Swift Enables Versatile App and Server-Side Development

Swift is not specific to Apple and iOS development, though it’s most identified with building applications for the Apple ecosystem (iOS, macOS, watchOS, and tvOS); it is a general-purpose language and can be used for server-side programming, web development, and even cross-platform development. With the open-source Swift project, it’s now a reality for developers to use Swift outside of the Apple ecosystem, with Swift available on Linux, Windows, and other environments. The availability of Swift in these ways positions Swift as a good choice for creating scalable, contemporary applications outside of mobile and desktop apps, with long-term viability across a range of development ecosystems.

Swift’s Business Advantages: Speed, Efficiency & Stability

Swift is a very effective combination of speed, efficiency, and reliability that makes it the ideal platform for modern app development. It’s expressive, JavaScript-like syntax allows developers to write clean and readable code, significantly reducing complexity and shortening the development time—vital for startups who must get their MVPs to market quickly. Swift combines C-level speed with an easy-to-learn syntax. It is highly efficient without compromising on readability or usability. Above all, Swift promotes strong typing and advanced error-handling features, allowing teams to identify bugs early on and develop robust, secure software. For businesses and startups, it means:

• Faster time-to-market: so you can release an MVP sooner and validate your solution faster (and not missing a chance on a fast moving market).
• Cost savings: Developing an MVP in Swift is cost-effective because it allows faster development cycles, more efficient performance, lower maintenance, and low or even zero to host.
• Long-term sustainability: It’s strong performance and memory safety features minimize the need for frequent rewrites or major optimizations, making it easier for businesses to scale and maintain their products.

These are key ingredients for opening the gateways for your business’ success.

Active Community and Ongoing Support

Since becoming open-source, Swift has created a very active developer community, which thrives on social media. This collective contributes to tons of resources, tools, and libraries, facilitating continuous improvement. Businesses benefit from this ecosystem through access to up-to-date solutions and ongoing support, ensuring their assets remain current and competitive.

Tibor Bödecs, our technology leader, is a member of the Swift Server Workgroup (SSWG), contributing his expertise to advance server-side Swift development and actively contributes to the community, continually seeking ways to improve the server-side Swift ecosystem. His active participation in the SSWG includes attending meetings and collaborating on initiatives aimed at enhancing Swift’s capabilities for server applications.

Future-Proof Investment

The reality that Apple is committed to Swift could not be any clearer. Firstly, because its regular updates and enhancements are reflecting the long-term vision that the company has for the programming language. Apple invested in Swift so businesses are able to align with future developments and ensure long-term compatibility, knowing they will be compatible with the course this world will take. This strategic alignment can put companies in a place to capitalize on new possibilities while maintaining a competitive advantage in the evolving tech ecosystem.

Take a look at Toucan, our Swift driven Static Site Generator product

Toucan is our Swift-based Static Site Generator (SSG) designed to offer entrepreneurs and businesses high performance and scalability based on their website requirements. Leveraging Swift’s speed and efficiency at its core, Toucan allows developers to easily build static sites using Markdown for content writing, and take advantage of free hosting via Github pages. This makes it easier for businesses to enter the market, with a lightweight, static site. By combining the simplicity of static content with the performance of Swift, Toucan allows businesses to create secure, high-performance websites that are easy to deploy and maintain. It’s great for a personal blog, corporate website, or e-commerce site.

Binary Birds’ Commitment to Swift

At Binary Birds, Swift is not only a technical choice - it’s a philosophy - a commitment. We’ve been fully invested in this powerful, modern language from day one, and we’re moving forward with building our products, services, and open-source contributions around it. With deep expertise in both server-side and app Swift, and leadership that has a direct impact on its trajectory through the Swift Server Workgroup, we’re at the forefront of where Swift is going next. If you’re looking to build stable, and scalable applications or to future-proof your tech stack, we’re here to help — because we don’t just use Swift, we have a stake in it.