IBM is acquiring StepZen Inc, developer of a GraphQL server with a unique architecture that helps developers build GraphQL APIs quickly and with less code.
The acquisition of StepZen's innovative technology for GraphQL API creation complements the innovations IBM is driving in API Connect to enable businesses to build better digital experiences for their clients, according to IBM.
StepZen complements IBM’s organic development in key areas including integration, API management, data fabric, and data management.
GraphQL has rapidly become a go-to query language for companies to interact with their data and is emerging as a new standard for APIs, layering upon the investments in REST APIs and data systems.
Founded in 2020, StepZen provides an easier way for developers to build GraphQL APIs. StepZen takes a declarative programming approach (describing what the program does, without explicitly specifying how), which results in smaller and more intuitive code, better runtime performance, and faster time to value, according to the vendor.
StepZen was also designed to be highly flexible. It is compatible with other API approaches and is available as-a-Service (SaaS) while also supporting deployments in private clouds and on-premises data centers.
StepZen was developed by a team of industry veterans who have made key contributions to database technology including IBM Db2, PostgreSQL and Apache Derby, and have deep expertise in APIs and cloud-scale deployments.
The acquisition closed on February 6, 2023, and the StepZen team and technology will become part of the IBM Software unit. Financial details of the deal were not disclosed.
The news marks IBM’s first acquisition of 2023. Since Arvind Krishna became CEO in April 2020, IBM has acquired 30 companies to bolster its hybrid cloud and artificial intelligence (AI) capabilities.
For more information about this acquisition, visit www.ibm.com.