# APIs as Innovation Engines 
source: https://developer.mastercard.com/blog/apis-as-innovation-engines/index.md

Authors: Donal Rafferty. "Standing on the shoulders of giants" is a phrase most of us are familiar with, but many don't pay enough heed to its significance. Western society in particular has evolved through a culture of individualism, rather than collectivism. We've been told heroic stories of great individual leaders, and most of us aspire to being one. However, if we peel back this narrative and look at the truth behind it, we see a different story. We find that many of our great inventors and innovators were inspired by the ideas and efforts of the people around them, as well as the people who went before them. They stood on the shoulders of giants. Let's take Thomas Edison as an example. I'm guessing you've heard of him, he did invent the lightbulb after all. But you probably haven't heard of Francis Jehl, one of his long-time assistants. In fact, Edison's creations came to life among a team of engineers in his laboratory, and he often acknowledged the collaborative nature of his creative solutions. Yet, we often read stories that portray Edison as an individual genius. For me, Steve Jobs was a modern example of someone who understands the importance of the collective for innovation to flourish. In the following quote, he uses the task of polishing stones as an interesting metaphor: "It's that through the team, through that group of incredibly talented people bumping up against each other, having arguments, having fights sometimes, making some noise, and working together they polish each other and they polish the ideas, and what comes out are these really beautiful stones." In essence, Jobs is describing how connectedness creates innovation. And when your job is to expose Mastercard's knowledge, and expertise, through a modern digital API platform, this concept becomes key. Thinking of APIs as another revenue stream, or as a new route to market for products is unimaginative. Rather, we acknowledge the inherent connectedness APIs offer, and their potential to drive innovation and creativity. The financial sector has seen rapid growth and expansion, driven by a combination of traditional players and new exciting start-ups. However, I firmly believe we have only just scratched the surface of innovation. As major technology players such as Mastercard offer more services via APIs, our customer base will diversify significantly. As more and more people get to access Mastercard's offerings, we exponentially increase the chance of an innovation clash occurring. Who knows what a farmer in South Africa, or a baker in New Zealand might concoct when their experience and knowledge bumps up against Mastercard's? This is possible because APIs act like bridges, they open up pathways to knowledge, and expertise, from various backgrounds. They allow the clashes that Jobs speaks of, just on an organizational scale. Think of how many times you've been told how important it is to grow your professional network. APIs allow the same principle to apply on an organizational scale. This is how new ideas are generated, and innovation roars into life. As the knowledge economy becomes more important as a competitive asset, every organization in the digital space needs to have an API strategy. They allow us to think together, share ideas, and connect with other communities. By exposing our competencies through APIs we're saying to the world that we're collaborators, not controllers. We're not just giving our existing customers another way to use our services, we're sending out a calling card. Here at Mastercard, we're fueled up and the innovation engine is well and truly alive.