Tool Open source
TypePHP is an ahead-of-time compiler for PHP developed by Swoole. It parses PHP source and declarations, lowers function bodies and constants to C++17, and compiles the generated code into native machine code rather than interpreting Zend opcodes at runtime. The compiler is written entirely in PHP and self-hosts by compiling its own source code.
The same codebase can produce native executables, loadable PHP extensions, shared libraries, and WASI or browser WebAssembly output. It supports compile-time native scalar types, high-precision numeric types, strongly typed containers, generated methods through attributes, and mixed C++/PHP projects; dynamic values, internal functions, reflection, and object metadata interoperate with the Zend runtime through PHPX. Its compatibility model intentionally covers a defined subset of PHP, with restrictions including declaration-only global scope and a required main() signature for binary mode.
TypePHP targets Linux, Windows, and macOS on x64 and ARM64, with PHP 8.4–8.5, a C++17 compiler, CMake, Composer, PHP development headers, and the matching PHP embed library required for relevant builds. It is distributed through Composer and the official repository under the GNU General Public License v3.0.
1 use taken from transcripts — each links to the moment in the video.
An ahead-of-time compiler that lowers PHP to C++17 and compiles it into native binaries. It can produce executable extensions or WebAssembly builds while remaining interoperable with the Zend runtime.
1 in the library.