[tvdw]

I could be completely wrong here, but doesn't this completely bypass the optimizer that makes C so fast?

[kibwen]

LLVM performs its optimization passes on the LLVM bitcode itself (the "middle-end" of the compiler), before finally translating the optimized bitcode into machine-specific binary code.

Not an LLVM expert though, I could be glossing over a few details.

[benbjohnson]

You're correct. LLVM includes a pass manager that performs extensive optimizations.