What Is Api3 (API3)?
Smart contracts often struggle to access dependable data, but application programming interfaces (APIs) have been touted as a solution to this problem. Api3 stated goal is to allow decentralized versions of APIs to be built, managed and monetized at scales. As blockchain technology plays an ever bigger role in the economy — from decentralized finance to supply chain management — the team behind this project says it has never been more important for smart contracts to provide “timely, reliable real-world data.”
- What Is Api3 (API3)?
- Api3 Storage Key Points
- Who Are the Founders of API3?
- The Web3 API Economy
- Create trustless applications that interact with Web APIs
- Light-weight, first-party data feeds that reduce cost and scale data access for Web3
- Call any Web API directly from a smart contract
- The Largest Association of API Providers on Web3
- Airnode is Web3 middleware that connects Web APIs directly to smart contracts
- API3 Token
- API3 DAO
- What Makes API3 Unique?
- How Many API3 (API3) Coins Are There in Circulation?
- Where Can You Buy API3 (API3)?
The whitepaper for API3 Coin was unveiled in September 2020 and set out the main problem that’s associated with APIs at present: connectivity. At present, there’s no way for smart contracts to establish a direct connection with APIs for the latest data — and this has led to an explosion in the popularity of oracles.
Although this has helped solve the problem to some extent, the industry has since been grappling with the “Blockchain Oracle Problem.” Oracles are a form of middleware that sit in between APIs and smart contracts — increasing costs and centralization. API3 intends to get around this problem by enabling API providers to operate their very own nodes. The token went live at the start of December following on from a token sale that generated tens of millions of dollars.
Api3 Storage Key Points
| Coin Basic | Information |
|---|---|
| Coin Name | Api3 |
| Short Name | API3 |
| Total Supply | 114,855,860 |
| Max Supply | N/A |
| Source Code | Click Here To View Source Code |
| Explorers | Click Here To View Explorers |
| Twitter Page | Click Here To Visit Twitter Group |
| Whitepaper | Click Here To View |
| Support | 24/7 |
| Official Project Website | Click Here To Visit Project Website |
Who Are the Founders of API3?
Three people have come together to bring API3 to life. The first is Heikki Vanttinen, who has written extensively about the project and what it hopes to achieve. He previously worked as founder and CEO at CLC Group, a blockchain lab “developing real-world connected smart contract solutions for a more trustless, efficient and secure future.” Vanttinen also served as chief marketing officer at Zippie, a mobile operating system that aims to help blockchain technology achieve mainstream adoption.
Vanttinen has been joined by Burak Benligiray. He also worked at CLC Group, serving as CTO. Benligiray has previously written posts highlighting the merits of ChainAPI, which serves as the integration platform for API3. This has been described as the “spiritual successor” to Honeycomb, which was one of the innovations that had been pursued by CLC Group.
And last but by no means least, the third co-founder at API3 is Saša Milić. As well as serving as a sessional lecturer at the University of Toronto, where she taught core curriculum courses to computer science students, she’s also worked as a software engineer for Facebook, and as a simulation data scientist for Gauntlet.
The Web3 API Economy
Create trustless applications that interact with Web APIs
First-party oracles are the next-generation technology to access off-chain data. API3 is leading the movement from legacy third-party oracle networks to first-party oracle solutions that deliver more security, efficiency, and data-source transparency.
Light-weight, first-party data feeds that reduce cost and scale data access for Web3
Beacons allow smart contract developers to connect Web3 applications to continuously updated streams of off-chain data, such as the latest cryptocurrency, stock and commodities prices. Operated by the market’s most trusted and reliable data providers, Beacons are a transparent, cost-efficient and scalable way for smart contracts to interact with the off-chain data they need.
Call any Web API directly from a smart contract
Data feeds bring globally-identical data streams to smart-contracts. But for Web3 to thrive it also needs context-specific APIs and off-chain services. Airnode delivers both by allowing Web APIs to be called directly from smart contracts. Introducing Web3 APIs.
The Largest Association of API Providers on Web3
Web3 is the biggest growth opportunity for businesses since the world wide web. But it’s been difficult for traditional businesses to access. The API3 Alliance changes that. Join the API3 Alliance and be part of the next iteration of the internet before it gets crowded.
Airnode is Web3 middleware that connects Web APIs directly to smart contracts
Blockchain-based Web3 applications have been limited by their inability to use real-world data and services. Airnode is the standardized API connectivity protocol that solves the Web3 accessibility problem. Open source and effortless, Airnode is the easy path to Web3.
API3 Token
Staking tokens grants voting power in the API3 DAO enabling you to participate in governance, steer the direction of the project and allocate resources. And it earns weekly rewards. The pool of staked tokens provides coverage for Web3 APIs, Beacons, and dAPIs. Locking tokens allows developers to subscribe to API access. The token is the lifeblood of API3.
API3 DAO
The decentralized web is designed to prevent single points of failure and abuse. The API3 DAO is the foundation on which API3’s security model is built, and necessary to create truly decentralized Web3 infrastructure. Without a DAO, centralized governance is the weakest link.
What Makes API3 Unique?
In the world of blockchain and crypto, we all too often hear about projects that are aiming to bring this technology to established industries such as real estate and finance. One of the most compelling attributes of API3 is how it’s aiming to fix some of the problems that have emerged within the blockchain space itself.
APIs are crucial because of how they supply blockchains with off-chain data — without it, these decentralized ledgers wouldn’t have a clue about how much coins should be worth.
In setting out why API3 is unique, Vanttinen explained how decentralized APIs can “provide superior data transparency all the way to the factual data source level, compared to existing decentralized oracles, which do not consider the data source API to be within the scope of their solution.”
Light and robust middleware called Airnode has been created to make API3 a reality — and the distinctive qualities of this tool concern how it can be deployed in minutes, enhancing transparency and substantially reducing transaction fees in the process.
How Many API3 (API3) Coins Are There in Circulation?
As of January 2020, CoinMarketCap data suggests that there are 13,847,549 API3 in circulation — out of a maximum supply of 100 million tokens. While 15 million tokens have been distributed among pre-seed and seed investors, a further 20 million tokens were reserved for a public token distribution event that took place over the first two weeks of December. The founding team was allocated 30 million tokens, with 10 million going to partners and contributors. And finally, 25 million went to an ecosystem fund. Tokens sold during a public sale are unlocked, but seed investors and founders are subject to a vesting period of between two and three years.
Where Can You Buy API3 (API3)?
One of the most popular exchanges where API3 can be purchased include Uniswap, where it is paired with Wrapped ETH. It’s also available against UDST on Huobi Global and KuCoin, and paired with ETH on OKEx and 1inch.
