October 16, 2023 By Eileen Lowry 3 min read

APIs serve as essential connectors between the growing number of data sources and applications in companies of all sizes and in all industries. This means that businesses are relying on and creating more APIs than ever before to get the data they need to power their applications and experiences, and scale their operations.

However, it’s difficult to manage APIs manually, which is why organizations are turning to API management solutions like IBM API Connect® to bring consistency and standardization to the entire process of developing, managing, securing, and sharing APIs.

Unlock the full value of your APIs with IBM API Connect

We are excited to share that Gartner recently named IBM a Leader in the 2023 Gartner® Magic Quadrant™ for API Management. And even though the API landscape is constantly shifting and evolving, IBM has been a Leader in this report eight times.

Receive a complimentary copy of the full Gartner Magic Quadrant report for more details on why Gartner recognized IBM as a Leader.

IBM ranked as the #1 vendor in 4 out of 5 use cases

The Critical Capabilities for API Management report from Gartner complements the above Magic Quadrant report and provides deeper insight into providers’ offerings by focusing on five key use cases within API management:

  1. Multiexperience Architecture
  2. Integration using APIs
  3. Internal API management
  4. Productizing APIs
  5. Distributed API Management

Receive a complimentary copy of the Gartner Critical Capabilities report to see why IBM was recognized, including why it received the highest use case score in four out of the five use cases.

Why IBM API Connect?

IBM has been innovating and investing in IBM API Connect to make it a top choice for companies that need to develop, manage, secure and share their APIs. Recent innovations and investments include:

  • GraphQL: Newer API formats like GraphQL have been growing in popularity in recent years. IBM’s acquisition of StepZen in early 2023 and the integration of these GraphQL capabilities into API Connect helps clients build, optimize, and scale GraphQL APIs quickly and easily. In API Connect, developers can build APIs declaratively, so they can create and deploy a production-level GraphQL API in minutes.
  • Advanced API security: As organizations continue to expand their digital footprint, APIs have become a top attack vector. To outsmart new threats, IBM is partnering with Noname Security to extend the security capabilities of IBM API Connect and IBM DataPower Gateway to offer advanced API security. This includes using automation and machine learning to identify unmanaged and potentially unsecure APIs, assess APIs for misconfigurations and vulnerabilities, and detect abnormal API traffic in real-time to block malicious traffic.
  • AI-powered API testing: It is critical that all APIs created and deployed are reliable, consistent, and high quality. API Connect applies AI and automation to API testing to improve developer productivity and deliver high quality APIs consistently.
  • Award-winning design: API management software should be accessible and easy to use for developers of any skill level. API Connect has won three recent design awards for building innovative experiences to make API management easier and more efficient for our users.
  • Versatile deployment options: API Connect can be deployed across any cloud or on-premises environment. It’s available as SaaS on AWS.

Learn more and get started

Watch the webinar: Join IBM and Gartner on October 25 for a 30-minute session discussing the latest API trends and practices.

Explore IBM API Connect: Learn more about the features and benefits of IBM’s API management software, plus read case studies and user reviews to see what clients think.

Book a live demo: See for yourself why IBM API Connect is a top choice for companies looking to secure and manage APIs through their entire lifecycle.


Gartner, Magic Quadrant for API Management, By Shameen PillaiKimihiko IijimaMark O’NeillJohn SantoroPaul DumasAndrew HumphreysNicholas Carter, 11 October 2023

GARTNER is a registered trademark and service mark of Gartner, Inc. and/or its affiliates in the U.S. and internationally, Magic Quadrant is a registered trademark of Gartner, Inc. and/or its affiliates and is used herein with permission. All rights reserved.

Gartner does not endorse any vendor, product or service depicted in its research publications and does not advise technology users to select only those vendors with the highest ratings or other designation. Gartner research publications consist of the opinions of Gartner’s Research & Advisory organization and should not be construed as statements of fact. Gartner disclaims all warranties, expressed or implied, with respect to this research, including any warranties of merchantability or fitness for a particular purpose.

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