API Harmony is described in the press release as an intelligent cloud-based API matchmaking technology for developers. To find the API that will help complete the developers life API Harmony will use machine learning and graph technology to tell the developer which API they most need. What is interesting about this is that API Harmony is not just recommending APIs but showing the relationships between the APIs and telling the developer what is missing.
There is a lot of confusion around the API Economy. Developers and security teams are beginning to ask questions such as:
- Where did this API come from?
- What does the API do?
- How can I trust this API?
- Is the API free to use?
- Can I expect the API to be maintained?
- Will the API be available for the length of the application?
These are not trivial questions and they are pretty serious issues that need to be addressed by companies such as IBM who want to grab a slice of what IBM believes will be a market worth $2.2 trillion by 2018. What makes the API Economy interesting to many people is that the APIs beginning to circulate are not just coming from technology companies.
Auto manufacturers, white and brown goods vendors and aerospace firms are just some of the companies releasing APIs. Alongside these are technology vendors such as software companies, cloud vendors and hardware manufacturers. At the end of the day, the idea is that APIs will enable everything to be connected by software.
According to the press release the new services and solutions IBM intend to deliver via APIs include:
- Strategy: With IBM’s API Economy Journey Map, consultants who are part of the company’s new cognitive practice will help clients identify key opportunities and gauge their readiness on their journey in the API Economy.
- Technologies: For the first time, IBM has infused machine-learning capabilities into its API Harmony technology that helps developers use intelligent search technology to quickly and easily find APIs and choose the combination of APIs that will be most effective for a given application.
- Ecosystem: IBM is collaborating with the Linux Foundation and leading industry standards organizations to provide an open platform for building, managing, securing and integrating open APIs.
Marie Wieck, General Manager, IBM Middleware said: “The API Economy opens up new opportunities for innovation in both business model and technology strategy when enterprises participate with digital business services. To succeed in the API Economy and reach new clients, enterprises need an open ecosystem for trusted exchange and a differentiating strategy for how they monetize those services. IBM is helping guide clients every step of the way into this API Economy as they start their journey to becoming cognitive businesses.”
