Xa iApple yaziswa Swift NgoJuni 2014 inqaku eliphambili, wathetha into ethandwa ngabaphuhlisi: iya kuba ngumthombo ovulekileyo. Esi yayisisithembiso ababengekasizalisekisi, kodwa njenganamhlanje ulwimi lwenkqubo lweSwift lusenjalo Vula Umnikezi. Oku kuthetha ukuba nawuphi na umthuthukisi unokukhuphela kwaye ayiguqule ngokuthanda kwaye asebenzise olu lwimi ukwenza isoftware yorhwebo, into enokwenzeka kuba ikhutshwe phantsi kwelayisenisi ye-Apache 2.0.
Swift, ohambayo ngoku inguqulelo 2.0, Iyahambelana neenkqubo zokusebenza ze-Apple, iOS kunye ne-OS X, kunye neenkqubo zokusebenza ze-Linux. Ngamanye amagama, ukwenza inkqubo nge-Swift kufuneka sibe nenkqubo yokusebenza esekwe kwi-Unix efakiweyo, ke iWindows ishiywe kuluhlu lweenkqubo ezihambelanayo. Nawuphi na umbhekisi phambili onekhompyuter yeWindows kuphela kufuneka afake okanye enze umatshini onenyani wenye yeenkqubo ezixhaswayo.
Xa u-Apple wayebonisa i-Swift kwiNkomfa ye-2014 yeHlabathi yoMthuthuzeli eBanzi, yayifuna ukuthetha nathi malunga nokuba kuya kuba lula kangakanani ukucwangcisa izindululo zayo ezintsha. Enye yeengongoma ezithandwa ngabaphuhlisi kukuba ikhowudi encinci isetyenziselwa ukwenza umsebenzi ofanayo, oya kuthetha ukuba ekugqibeleni abaphuhlisi abatsha baya kufuneka bakhumbuze imiyalelo embalwa kwaye kuya kuthatha ixesha elincinci lokucwangcisa. Ngokuyenza ibe ngumthombo ovulekileyo, kubonakala ngathi i-Apple ifuna ukuba nawuphi na umphuhlisi azuze kwiingenelo zolwimi lwayo olutsha lwenkqubo, ngoko ke i-Swift inokusetyenziselwa inkqubo ye-Android, imbangi ephambili ye-iOS.
I-Apple isungule iwebhusayithi entsha yeprojekthi: swift.org. Ukusuka kule webhusayithi, abaphuhlisi banokukhuphela zonke izixhobo eziyimfuneko zokuqalisa inkqubo nge-Swift, njengamaxwebhu obugcisa kunye namakhonkco kwi-GitHub apho banokukhuphela ikhowudi yomthombo wolwimi. Naziphi na iziphakamiso okanye iminikelo kuya kufuneka ifakwe kwi-GitHub, kodwa izimvo ziya kwenziwa kwi-swift.org.