APIs are all about communication. Services talk to other services and front-ends talk to backends. But APIs also define the rules that developers must follow when writing code to complete their tasks, so good APIs clearly communicate their intent to a human audience.
A modern cloud operating model is API-driven, but what does that really look like? Should you use GraphQL or ReST? Stick with JSON or is gRPC a better choice? When do you need a service mesh or an API gateway? How do you factor in the people who have to build, maintain, evolve, and consume your APIs?
The modern APIs track will include real-world stories and advice regarding all the challenges and important decisions needed for a successful API strategy.
From this track
API Evolution Without Versioning
Friday Dec 2 / 09:00AM PST
Versioning is usually the first–and too often, the only–technique architects reach for when imagining a breaking change to an API’s interface. Based on my experience managing the evolution of a public API, I’ve recently cataloged several alternative techniques and their tradeoffs.
Brandon Byars
North America Head of Technology @thoughtworks
What API Product Managers Need
Friday Dec 2 / 10:10AM PST
With thousands of APIs being built across the industry, serving millions of developers worldwide, and driving billions in revenue, there is a need to manage APIs as products. Building great API products requires both building technically sound APIs and creating an API experience to match.
Deepa Goyal
Product Strategy @Postman, previously Product Developer @PayPal & @Twilio
Scaling GraphQL Adoption at Netflix
Friday Dec 2 / 11:20AM PST
GraphQL is steadily gaining popularity as an API technology choice for Client to Server communication. However, it can be daunting to realize the benefits of GraphQL without significant investment.
Tejas Shikhare
Senior Software Engineer @Netflix
Sidecars, eBPF and the Future of Service Mesh
Friday Dec 2 / 12:30PM PST
Controversy over the future of service meshes and their architectures is swirling. This is a vital discussion as enterprise migration to microservice and Kubernetes-based architectures continue. This talk incorporates the latest community developments to explore what the future looks like.
Jim Barton
Field Engineer @Solo
