API Experts - Why an API Platform is important

API platforms play a crucial role in transforming API development into a repeatable and consistent process, essential for providing a seamless experience for both internal and external developers. By handling all non-business logic aspects of API operations, these platforms allow developers to focus on core functionalities, ensuring uniformity across APIs in terms of style, error handling, and documentation. Roopak Venkatakrishnan, a director of engineering at Bolt, emphasizes the necessity of formalizing an API strategy early to avoid technical debt and maintain consistency as the company scales. He highlights the importance of both APIs and webhooks, with webhooks serving as a push mechanism to notify customers of system changes. The API platform team at Bolt, known as the DevEx team, focuses on enhancing developer experience by improving API documentation, managing API lifecycle elements like key rotation and authentication, and ensuring that new APIs align with established standards. The team is also working on reducing the time it takes for partner developers to make their first successful API call, while also contemplating the integration of internal APIs into their remit as the company grows.