CA Technologies has delivered a set of new capabilities for its API management portfolio that simplify and speed up API development.
The new capabilities include a new release of CA Live API Creator, which, unlike other solutions, does not require developers to have database expertise. The tool’s graphical interface enables even non-developers to have a part in building applications. For instance, a business manager could use the tool to visualize an application rather than having to include developers in the early stages of the application creation process.
“Digital transformation is more than just embracing mobile and cloud,” Rahim Bhatia, general manager of CA API Management, said in a statement. “It’s also about transforming how the applications that drive today’s economy are built. The new releases in CA’s API Management portfolio arm API and mobile developers with powerful tools that make their jobs easier, and we’re engaging other key stakeholders in the development process so organizations can accelerate time-to-market for new apps and services.”
Meanwhile, CA also updated its API Gateway and Mobile App Services products with new capabilities to enhance developer productivity, including providing CA API Gateway support for Docker containers to give developers portability and more control of their development environment. In addition, CA is providing developers access to CA Mobile App Services components, such as SDKs, on GitHub to boost developer adoption and convenience. The company also is providing CA Mobile API Gateway support for the Android platform and multifactor authentication for developers accessing APIs.
CA Technologies announced the enhancements to its API management portfolio on Sept. 12 at the API World conference in San Jose, Calif.
“CA is dramatically changing the application development dynamic for how APIs and entire application back ends are created,” Alexei Balaganski, an analyst with KuppingerCole, said in a statement. “CA Live API Creator is a valuable addition to the company’s already first-class API management portfolio.”
CA’s news comes just days after Google announced an agreement to acquire API management platform provider Apigee for $625 million, a deal that underscores the importance of APIs.
In other API-related news, project44, a Chicago-based enterprise cloud company that provides APIs for supply chain organizations, announced that it received $10.5 million in venture capital funding from Emergence Capital, along with Chicago Ventures and Silicon Valley Bank.
Project44 provides a network of web service APIs that facilitate real-time information flow between global supply chain partners, particularly in the less-than-truckload (LTL) or small-freight sector of the market—which the company estimates to be worth $37 billion. With the new infusion of funds, project44 plans to enhance its technology to support the truckload, final mile and intermodal freight transportation modes. The company also will work on data intelligence and analytics offerings for the global supply chain, said Jett McCandless, co-founder and CEO of project44.
“By eliminating the supply chain’s reliance on poor performing, pre-Internet legacy communication systems like Electronic Document Interchange (EDI) or static rate tables, and transitioning the industry to web service APIs, we are empowering big-box retailers, e-commerce businesses and their logistics providers to deliver goods in the shortest timeframe possible with the highest level of transparency and operational efficiency,” McCandless said in a statement.
Project44 launched its initial freight API in December of 2015 and now holds more than 65 enterprise clients, ranging from retailers, suppliers, third-party logistics firms and transportation carriers. The company has a network of more than 1,000 APIs and more than 2.1 million daily API transactions flow though the network via the company’s subscription-based customers. For instance, Uber’s API connection for same-day delivery service, Uber Rush, is one of the APIs included in project44’s network.
And in yet another key API-related move, Aruba, a Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE) company, on Sept. 12 announced the Aruba Mobile First Platform, a software layer that uses APIs to provide a platform for mobile and internet of things developers.
Known as the Aruba Mobile First Platform, the API-based platform is built on ArubaOS 8. ArubaOS 8 is a new operating system that enables developers to tap into contextual information from the infrastructure.
The Aruba Mobile First Platform also features enhancements to the Aruba ClearPass policy manager. Aruba officials said ecosystem partners can integrate with ClearPass by placing their software into a repository that can be accessed via APIs.