For the last decade, the internet ran on APIs.
Requests in.
Responses out.
Clean. Predictable. Controlled.
That model scaled because software waited.
Agents don’t.
The common assumption is that agents are just better API consumers.
More calls.
More efficiency.
Same structure.
That feels logical.
And completely wrong.
API economies are built around permissioned access.
Rate limits.
Static pricing.
Clear ownership.
Agent economies are built around intent.
Delegation.
Continuous decision-making.
This isn’t a technical disagreement.
It’s a power conflict.
APIs expect clients to ask.
Agents expect systems to negotiate.
When agents operate inside API constraints, they adapt briefly.
Then they route around them.
This is where things usually break. Not loudly. Quietly.
We’re already seeing it.
Workflows bypassing rigid endpoints.
Value settling outside predefined billing logic.
Coordination happening where APIs can’t see.
I keep thinking about this.
APIs were designed to protect systems from misuse.
Agents are designed to avoid waiting.
Those goals don’t align for long.
Kite sits on the fault line between the two.
Not trying to replace APIs.
But enabling agents to operate economically when APIs stop being sufficient.
Maybe this isn’t a war with winners and losers.
Maybe it’s a transition.
But one thing feels clear.
Economies built for requests won’t outlast economies built for decisions.
And systems that confuse the two will learn the difference under pressure.
