The SYCL runtime for the DPC++ project uses OpenCL and other means to enact the parallelism. SYCL typically requires fewer lines of code to implement kernels and also fewer calls to essential API functions and methods. It enables creation of OpenCL programs by embedding the device source code in line with the host source code.

OpenCL application developers are keenly aware of the somewhat verbose setup code that goes with offloading kernels on devices. Using SYCL, it is possible to develop a clean, modern C++ based application without most of the setup associated with OpenCL C code. This reduces the learning effort and allows for focus on parallelization techniques.

However, OpenCL application features can continue to be used via the SYCL API. The updated code can use as much or as little of the SYCL interface as desired.