Why embedded iPaaS are a bad idea

Embedded iPaaS platforms, designed to allow non-technical users to build integrations using prebuilt blocks, often fail to deliver on their promises due to several key limitations. The assumption that non-technical users can handle complex integrations is flawed, as real-world applications require deep understanding of data models and handling of edge cases like API inconsistencies and rate limits, which often necessitate developer intervention. Prebuilt connectors rarely align with specific product needs, limiting customization and often requiring developers to learn proprietary frameworks. Moreover, these platforms lack the necessary abstractions for developers, such as end-to-end type safety and support for continuous syncs, and tend to break under scale due to inefficiencies like repeated data serialization. As a result, many teams find themselves reverting to developer-centric tools like Nango, which offer greater control, flexibility, and scalability, allowing engineers to write integration logic in code while handling complex tasks like OAuth and webhooks out of the box, thereby providing a more reliable and scalable solution for building integrations.