temo_pacheco

I am demonstrating that the development methodology has successfully produced an assembly-based C compiler capable of compiling the Linux kernel—a complex task, given the complexity of both compilers and the kernel itself.

Because this methodology enables the creation of a compiler with such capabilities, it also allows for the development of other complex systems across different domains.

C is a standard that can be implemented in myriad ways, yet any implementation must ultimately be capable of compiling any valid C code. By following this methodology, anyone can extend the codebase to support assembly for a different architecture. This project never relied on "copy-pasting" code snippets from GCC or copyright laundering.

Thank you for your interest in this topic.

Yes, it involved seven weeks of work using Claude Code sessions—from July 25 to September 14, as indicated by the repository commits.

The total cost was simply the recurring monthly subscription fee. I wasn't granted any extra credits by CC; although I occasionally hit my weekly usage limit—partly due to consumption from other projects—I would simply wait a few hours before resuming work.

I spent six to eight hours a day interacting with the session, and whenever I had the time, I dedicated even more hours to it, as my goal was to get the job done. During the final days, much of the time was spent waiting for regression tests to pass so I could proceed with debugging.

The service remained active throughout the entire seven-week period. I consistently used Opus 4.8 to maintain model consistency during development.

I tried to post as "Show HN", but HN restricts Show HN for new accounts.

I used my $100-per-month Cloud Code subscription. It was enough to build the compiler from scratch. Although the subscription also allowed me to work on other projects simultaneously, the methodology optimizes resource usage—an important aspect to demonstrate as well. That is why I chose to create a C compiler.

I am using an LLM solely to help improve my translation. The compiler works, and the code explains it very well. We can discuss the compiler and the method I used to create it with the help of AI.

On optimization I deliberately aimed low: a small set of passes, nothing beyond what I could prove. Everything is verified against clang/gcc output on real software rather than against my own expectations, and the compiler compiles itself and reproduces itself bit-for-bit, so it's its own regression test. In practice the generated code holds up fine — DOOM runs smoothly, so do Lua. I chose provable correctness over speed; optimization is the least finished part of the project and there's real work left there.