The Internet is an endless flow of conversations between computers. These conversations often take place using application programming interfaces (APIs), which allow us to interact with software and apps in new ways. For instance, OpenAI’s ChatGPT API enables Slack to streamline chat-based workflows, and Booking.com to deliver more personalized trip planning experiences.

Today, APIs outpace other Internet traffic, comprising more than half (57%) of the dynamic Internet traffic processed by Cloudflare1 last year.

However, as explored in this 2024 API Security and Management Report, APIs are increasingly complex to manage and protect against abuse.