graphics-rendering

name	graphics-rendering
description	Survey of graphics and rendering APIs for cross-platform 2D/3D graphics in Crystal. Covers WebGPU/wgpu-native, Metal 4, Vulkan/MoltenVK, Skia, Filament, and OpenGL ES. Includes FFI feasibility assessment. STUB — implementation deferred, research preserved.
user-invocable	true
allowed-tools	Read, Write, Edit, Glob, Grep, Bash, WebSearch, WebFetch
version	0.1.0

Graphics & Rendering APIs

STATUS: STUB — Implementation Deferred

This document preserves research findings for future work. No graphics rendering code exists in the asset_pipeline today. Implementation is deferred pending prioritization.

The asset_pipeline currently renders UI using native platform components (NSView, UIView, Android Views, HTML elements). These native components handle 2D presentation (layout, text, images, basic shapes) perfectly well. Custom 2D drawing and 3D rendering require a separate graphics layer that does not yet exist.

When graphics rendering is eventually implemented, this document is the starting point for architectural decisions.

---

1. Planned Capabilities (Future)

The asset_pipeline will eventually include:

• 2D custom drawing — A UI::Canvas view type that allows application code to draw paths, shapes, text, and images using a programmatic API. This is the "draw it yourself" escape hatch beyond the 9 native view types.
• GPU-accelerated effects — Blur, gradients, shadows, image filters applied via GPU rather than CPU compositing.
• 3D scene rendering — A UI::Scene3D view type embedding a 3D viewport. Physically-based rendering (PBR), lighting, mesh loading.
• Cross-platform shader support — Write shaders once, compile to platform-appropriate format (MSL, SPIR-V, GLSL ES, WGSL).

None of the above exist today. The view type stubs (if added) should produce empty/placeholder output in all current renderers.

---

2. GPU API Landscape

2a. WebGPU / wgpu-native (RECOMMENDED PRIMARY BACKEND)

What it is: A modern, unified GPU programming API. webgpu.h is a C header defining the API surface; wgpu-native is a production implementation of that header in Rust, exposing a shared library that Crystal can link against via @[Link].

Lineage: The WebGPU specification was designed by W3C with input from Apple, Google, and Mozilla. wgpu-native (by the gfx-rs team) and Dawn (by Google) are both conforming implementations sharing a converging webgpu.h header. Firefox uses wgpu-native; Chrome uses Dawn.

Backend mapping on each platform:

Crystal target	wgpu-native backend
macOS (flag?(:macos))	Metal
iOS (flag?(:ios))	Metal
Android (flag?(:android))	Vulkan
Linux	Vulkan
Windows	DirectX 12 or Vulkan
Web (WASM)	Native WebGPU API in the browser

FFI feasibility: Tier 1 — pure C header, direct lib binding from Crystal.

The header (webgpu.h) uses only C types: opaque pointers, enums, structs of primitives, and function pointer callbacks. No C++ templates, no exceptions, no ObjC. Crystal's lib declarations can cover the entire surface.

Why recommended: Single API for all platforms. C header. Actively maintained. Production-proven (Firefox). Powers cross-platform Rust graphics (wgpu crate). The webgpu.h standard is converging across implementations, so bindings written today will remain valid as the ecosystem matures.

Status as of 2025: Production-ready. webgpu.h is stable. wgpu-native releases are tagged on GitHub. The two major implementations (wgpu-native and Dawn) are converging toward the shared header format, meaning Crystal bindings written to webgpu.h will work against either.

Repository: https://github.com/gfx-rs/wgpu-native

---

2b. Metal 4 (Apple Platforms Only)

What it is: Apple's GPU API, announced at WWDC 2025. Metal 4 is a significant redesign — not just an incremental update. It brings Apple's GPU API to rough feature parity with DirectX 12 and Vulkan in terms of explicit control.

Platform requirements: macOS 26 (Tahoe) or later, iOS 26 or later, Apple M1 / A14 Bionic or later. Metal 4 drops Intel Mac support entirely. Metal 3 and earlier remain available on older hardware.

Key features introduced in Metal 4:

• Unified command encoder (replaces the separate render/compute/blit encoders of Metal 3)
• First-class tensor support for machine learning inference within shaders
• Native frame interpolation via MetalFX (generates intermediate frames cheaply)
• Path-traced rendering support
• Explicit memory management (closer to Vulkan's memory model)
• Improved debugging and GPU capture tooling

FFI feasibility: Tier 2 — ObjC API, requires C shim wrappers.

Metal's API is expressed in Objective-C (and Swift, which is not usable from Crystal FFI). Crystal cannot call ObjC methods directly without going through the ObjC runtime C API (objc_msgSend) as the asset_pipeline's existing AppKit bridge already does. For Metal, C shim wrappers in a .c file would be needed — the same pattern as objc_bridge.c in the existing renderer.

When to use Metal 4 directly: Only for Apple-specific optimization or features not available through wgpu-native's Metal backend. The wgpu-native library already uses Metal on Apple platforms; reaching for Metal 4 APIs directly would be for cases where wgpu-native's abstraction is too high-level (e.g., tensor operations, frame interpolation).

Note: Metal 4 and Metal 3 coexist. Metal 4 is not a replacement that removes older APIs. Code targeting Metal 4 must gate on OS version at runtime (#available in ObjC/Swift, or a version-check C wrapper for Crystal).

---

2c. Vulkan / MoltenVK

What it is: The Khronos Group's cross-platform, low-level GPU API. The vulkan.h C header defines the full API. Android supports Vulkan natively through the NDK. Apple platforms support Vulkan through MoltenVK (a translation layer that implements Vulkan on top of Metal).

MoltenVK 1.4 (released August 2025): Implements Vulkan 1.4 on macOS, iOS, tvOS, and visionOS. It is layered atop Metal — MoltenVK translates Vulkan calls to Metal calls at runtime. MoltenVK is "non-conformant" (it passes most but not all Vulkan conformance tests) due to Metal API limitations, but it is stable and widely used in shipping games.

Platform support:

Platform	Vulkan availability
Android	Native (NDK), Vulkan 1.3+ on modern devices
macOS	Via MoltenVK (Vulkan 1.4, non-conformant)
iOS	Via MoltenVK (Vulkan 1.4, non-conformant)
Linux	Native (Mesa, NVIDIA, AMD drivers)
Windows	Native (NVIDIA, AMD, Intel drivers)

FFI feasibility: Tier 1 — pure C API, direct lib binding from Crystal.

vulkan.h is a C header with opaque handles, enums, structs, and function pointers. The same Crystal lib approach as wgpu-native applies. Vulkan's API surface is significantly larger than WebGPU's and requires more boilerplate per operation (explicit pipeline state objects, descriptor sets, render passes, memory allocation). This is not a barrier to FFI, but it means more Crystal binding code to write.

Relationship to wgpu-native: wgpu-native uses Vulkan as its backend on Android and Linux. Writing directly to Vulkan instead of wgpu-native bypasses the abstraction but gains lower-level control. For most use cases, wgpu-native is the better choice. Vulkan directly would be appropriate only if wgpu-native's overhead were measurably problematic (unlikely for UI rendering workloads).

---

2d. Skia C API (2D Drawing)

What it is: Google's 2D graphics library. Skia underlies Chrome, Android's 2D rendering, Flutter's custom painting, and many other products. Skia has a stable C API (sk_*.h headers) that wraps its C++ internals.

C API types: sk_canvas_t, sk_paint_t, sk_path_t, sk_surface_t, sk_image_t, sk_typeface_t, sk_font_t. These are opaque void* wrappers with C function interfaces.

Platforms: macOS, iOS, Android, Linux, Windows, Web (via Skia compiled to WASM).

FFI feasibility: Tier 1 — C API available, direct lib binding from Crystal.

The C API is more stable than Skia's C++ API (which changes frequently). C bindings for Skia exist for other languages (Go via cskia, .NET via SkiaSharp) and serve as a reference. The C API does not expose the full Skia feature set — some GPU-accelerated paths require using the C++ API through thin C wrappers.

Best for:

• 2D custom drawing (paths, shapes, arcs, curves)
• Text rendering with fine-grained control (custom typefaces, glyph manipulation)
• Image manipulation (filters, compositing, pixel operations)
• A UI::Canvas implementation that needs CPU-side 2D drawing without a GPU pipeline

Relationship to Flutter: Skia is exactly what Flutter uses for its custom painting (Canvas in Flutter's painting API). If we eventually add UI::Canvas, Skia is the most direct path to the same capability.

Note on building Skia: Skia is not available as a pre-built system library on macOS or iOS (unlike on Android, where it is part of the OS). It must be compiled from source and bundled or linked statically. The build system uses GN (not CMake or Make), which adds complexity. Pre-built Skia binaries are available from the SkiaSharp project as a reference.

---

2e. Filament (3D Engine)

What it is: Google's open-source, real-time physically based rendering (PBR) 3D engine. Filament is designed for mobile and desktop, with a focus on correct PBR materials, global illumination, and efficient rendering.

Platforms: Android, iOS, macOS, Windows, Linux, Web (WebGL2 / WebAssembly).

Backend rendering APIs:

• Android: Vulkan (preferred) or OpenGL ES
• iOS / macOS: Metal
• Web: WebGL2

FFI feasibility: Tier 2 — C++ API, requires a C wrapper layer.

Filament's public API is C++. It uses C++ classes with virtual dispatch, templates, and RAII. Crystal cannot call C++ directly. A C wrapper library (a thin .c or .cpp shim exposing C-compatible filament_* functions) would be needed. This is more work than Tier 1 APIs but is a well-understood pattern (Filament's own Android bindings use a similar JNI-bridging approach).

Best for: 3D scene rendering with correct lighting, PBR materials, shadows. Filament is far more than a GL wrapper — it includes a material system, a GPU-resident scene graph, and optimized shaders for mobile GPUs. If UI::Scene3D is ever implemented, Filament is the best candidate backend.

Maintenance: Actively maintained by Google (used in production in Android apps and Google Earth). Regular releases on GitHub.

---

2f. OpenGL ES

What it is: The embedded/mobile subset of OpenGL. OpenGL ES 2.0 and 3.x are widely supported on older devices.

Platform status in 2025:

Platform	Status
Apple platforms (iOS, macOS)	Deprecated since iOS 12 / macOS 10.14 (2018). Still available but not recommended. No new features. May be removed in future OS versions.
Android	Available but Vulkan is preferred for new work. OpenGL ES 3.2 is standard.
Linux	Available via Mesa. Not deprecated.
Windows	Available. Not deprecated.

FFI feasibility: Tier 1 — pure C API (gl.h, gles2.h, gles3.h), direct lib binding.

Recommendation: Do not use for new code. Apple has deprecated OpenGL ES on all Apple platforms and may remove it. On Android, Vulkan supersedes it. For any new graphics work, use wgpu-native (which supports OpenGL ES as a fallback backend on platforms where Vulkan is unavailable).

The only scenario where OpenGL ES makes sense is supporting very old Android devices (pre-API 24) that lack Vulkan. wgpu-native handles this automatically by falling back to OpenGL ES.

---

2g. Core Graphics (Apple 2D, Bonus Entry)

What it is: Apple's 2D drawing framework. Available on macOS and iOS as a C API (CoreGraphics/CoreGraphics.h). Powers all 2D drawing in AppKit and UIKit.

FFI feasibility: Tier 1 — pure C API (CGContext, CGPath, CGColor, etc.).

Core Graphics is already partially used via the ObjC bridge (CGRect, CGPoint, CGSize are used in the AppKit renderer for view geometry). Expanding to drawing operations (CGContextAddPath, CGContextFillPath, etc.) would be straightforward.

When relevant: If UI::Canvas is implemented and the web/Android renderers use Skia or wgpu-native, the Apple renderer could use Core Graphics for 2D drawing rather than bundling Skia, since Core Graphics is already present on every Apple device.

---

2h. AGSL (Android Graphics Shading Language, Bonus Entry)

What it is: Android's runtime shader language, available on Android 13 (API 33) and later. Allows attaching custom GPU shaders to Android View backgrounds and effects using the RuntimeShader API.

FFI feasibility: Tier 2 — JNI API. Accessible via the existing JNI bridge pattern used in the Android renderer.

When relevant: Custom visual effects on Android that go beyond what MaterialSurface or view backgrounds provide. Not a general-purpose GPU API — specifically for Android view-level shader effects.

---

3. FFI Feasibility Matrix

API	FFI Tier	Header	Crystal Difficulty	Platforms	Recommended Use
WebGPU / wgpu-native	1	webgpu.h	Low	All (Metal/Vulkan/D3D12/WebGPU backends)	Primary GPU backend
Vulkan	1	vulkan.h	Medium (large, verbose API)	Android, macOS/iOS via MoltenVK, Linux, Windows	Alternative to wgpu-native; lower-level
Skia C API	1	sk_*.h	Low	All	2D drawing / UI::Canvas
Core Graphics	1	CoreGraphics.h (C)	Low	Apple only	2D drawing on Apple (no bundling needed)
Metal 4	2	ObjC	Medium (needs C shim, same as AppKit bridge)	Apple only (macOS 26 / iOS 26+, M1/A14+)	Apple-specific optimization or tensor ops
Filament	2	C++	High (needs C wrapper library)	All	3D rendering / UI::Scene3D
OpenGL ES	1	gles2.h / gles3.h	Low	Android, Linux (deprecated Apple)	Avoid; legacy only
AGSL	2	JNI	Medium	Android 13+ (API 33+)	Custom shaders on Android views

Tier 1: Pure C header, standard Crystal lib declarations, direct linking. Same pattern as the existing ObjC bridge C helpers.

Tier 2: Requires additional work — either C shim wrappers (Metal 4, Filament) or JNI bridge (AGSL). Still feasible, just more code.

---

4. Recommended Architecture (When Implemented)

For GPU-accelerated rendering (2D + 3D):

UI::Canvas (Crystal view type — stub today)
  |
  v
PlatformVisitor (compile-time selected)
  |
  +-- Web::Renderer       -> HTML5 Canvas API  (via <canvas> element)
  +-- AppKit::Renderer    -> wgpu-native (Metal backend) or Core Graphics
  +-- UIKit::Renderer     -> wgpu-native (Metal backend) or Core Graphics
  +-- Android::Renderer   -> wgpu-native (Vulkan backend)

UI::Scene3D (Crystal view type — stub today)
  |
  v
PlatformVisitor
  |
  +-- Web::Renderer       -> WebGL2 via Filament WASM or Three.js
  +-- AppKit::Renderer    -> Filament (Metal backend)
  +-- UIKit::Renderer     -> Filament (Metal backend)
  +-- Android::Renderer   -> Filament (Vulkan backend)

For 2D drawing only (simpler path):

UI::Canvas -> Skia C API -> Skia's platform backend

Skia handles the platform backend selection internally. This avoids writing per-platform rendering code for 2D at the cost of bundling Skia (adds ~6–10 MB to binary size depending on compile options).

---

5. Crystal FFI Binding Examples

These are structural examples to guide future binding work. They are not yet in the codebase.

5a. WebGPU (wgpu-native)

# Future: src/ui/native/wgpu.cr
@[Link("wgpu_native")]
lib LibWGPU
  # Opaque handles (all are void* underneath)
  type WGPUInstance       = Void*
  type WGPUAdapter        = Void*
  type WGPUDevice         = Void*
  type WGPUQueue          = Void*
  type WGPUSurface        = Void*
  type WGPURenderPipeline = Void*
  type WGPUCommandEncoder = Void*
  type WGPUTextureView    = Void*
  type WGPUBuffer         = Void*
  type WGPUShaderModule   = Void*

  # Descriptor structs (simplified — full structs have many fields)
  struct WGPUInstanceDescriptor
    next_in_chain : Void*  # chaining for extensions
  end

  struct WGPURequestAdapterOptions
    next_in_chain     : Void*
    compatible_surface : WGPUSurface
    power_preference   : UInt32  # WGPUPowerPreference enum
    backend_type       : UInt32  # WGPUBackendType enum
    force_fallback_adapter : Bool
  end

  # Callback types
  alias WGPURequestAdapterCallback = (UInt32, WGPUAdapter, LibC::Char*, Void*) -> Void
  alias WGPURequestDeviceCallback  = (UInt32, WGPUDevice, LibC::Char*, Void*) -> Void

  # Core functions
  fun wgpuCreateInstance(descriptor : WGPUInstanceDescriptor*) : WGPUInstance
  fun wgpuInstanceRequestAdapter(
    instance  : WGPUInstance,
    options   : WGPURequestAdapterOptions*,
    callback  : WGPURequestAdapterCallback,
    user_data : Void*
  ) : Void
  fun wgpuAdapterRequestDevice(
    adapter   : WGPUAdapter,
    descriptor : Void*,   # WGPUDeviceDescriptor*
    callback  : WGPURequestDeviceCallback,
    user_data : Void*
  ) : Void
  fun wgpuDeviceGetQueue(device : WGPUDevice) : WGPUQueue
  fun wgpuInstanceRelease(instance : WGPUInstance) : Void
  fun wgpuAdapterRelease(adapter : WGPUAdapter) : Void
  fun wgpuDeviceRelease(device : WGPUDevice) : Void
end

5b. Skia C API