Learning API Styles • Lukasz Dynowski & Sam Newman • GOTO 2026

This interview was recorded for the GOTO Book Club. #GOTOcon #GOTObookclub http://gotopia.tech/bookclub Check out more here: https://gotopia.tech/episodes/436 Lukasz Dynowski - Independent Consultant & Co-Author of "Learning API Styles" @ldynia1 Sam Newman - Author of "Building Microservices" & "Monolith to Microservices" @samnewman4355 RESOURCES Lukasz https://github.com/ludyn-leo https://www.linkedin.com/in/ldynia https://learningapistyles.com Sam https://twitter.com/samnewman https://github.com/snewman https://www.linkedin.com/in/samnewman http://samnewman.io http://samnewman.io/blog Links https://www.youtube.com/@ldynia1 https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLRkB-vSK4koOHYIhpKXuXpipVpByEKuPu https://learningapistyles.com https://github.com/ldynia/learning-api-styles https://nordicapis.com/the-bezos-api-mandate-amazons-manifesto-for-externalization https://dl.acm.org/doi/10.1145/1176617.1176622 https://youtu.be/t67oWHa00iE https://youtu.be/etKM5-gGwto https://youtu.be/272ZZ53HS_4 https://youtu.be/Ss1tZjooo9I https://youtu.be/nxQrpLfX3rs https://youtu.be/3iY9WDXPIVo https://youtu.be/SrA543HT3bA https://youtu.be/pUxyukqoXR4 https://youtu.be/ESM84C7QKl8 https://youtu.be/IawEKBxjs14 https://youtu.be/GBTdnfD6s5Q DESCRIPTION In this GOTO Book Club episode, Sam Newman — author of "Building Microservices" — sits down with Lukasz Dynowski, co-author of "Learning API Styles", for a refreshingly low-level deep dive into a subject most developers think they already understand. The book deliberately starts from the network layer up — transmission modes, TCP, protocol stacks — rather than jumping straight to REST and GraphQL, because, as Lukasz explains, most API problems only become visible when you understand the substrate beneath them. The conversation covers the full spectrum: public vs internal APIs, the Bezos API Mandate moment, why treating your API as a product is non-negotiable, and why the choice between binary and textual protocols is never as obvious as performance benchmarks suggest. The real gold comes in two moments. First, Lukasz lays out a crisp checklist for what makes a good API — audience-awareness, maintainability, efficiency, intuitiveness, resilience, security, testability, and documentation that actually matches behavior. Second, Sam shares a war story about a credit derivative system where the only way to figure out who was accessing the database was to turn off the credentials and wait for angry phone calls. The lesson: context shapes every trade-off, there's no universal right answer between REST, gRPC, WebSockets, or messaging, and the best API decision is the one that fits your situation — not the one that fits the conference talk. TIMECODES 00:00 Intro 01:30 Why start from the network layer? 05:12 Who is this book for? 08:41 Public vs private APIs & the Bezos API Mandate 11:09 Making API trade-off decisions: Security, efficiency & context 19:49 Future of APIs: gRPC, WebTransport & what's coming next 25:44 What makes a good API? 30:07 Outro RECOMMENDED BOOKS Lukasz Dynowski • Learning API Styles • https://amzn.to/3PFembK Sam Newman • Building Resilient Distributed Systems • https://www.oreilly.com/library/view/building-resilient-distributed/9781098163532 Sam Newman • Monolith to Microservices • https://amzn.to/2Nml96E Sam Newman • Building Microservices • https://amzn.to/3dMPbOs Ronnie Mitra & Irakli Nadareishvili • Microservices: Up and Running• https://amzn.to/3c4HmmL https://bsky.app/profile/gotocon.com https://twitter.com/GOTOcon https://www.linkedin.com/company/goto- https://www.instagram.com/goto_con https://www.facebook.com/GOTOConferences #API #APIs #LearningAPIStyles #GraphQL #gRPC #Microservices #WebSockets #SoftwareArchitecture #TodayInTech #SoftwareEngineering #Programming #LukaszDynowski #SamNewman #BookClub CHANNEL MEMBERSHIP BONUS Join this channel to get early access to videos & other perks: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCs_tLP3AiwYKwdUHpltJPuA/join Looking for a unique learning experience? Attend the next GOTO conference near you! Get your ticket at https://gotopia.tech Sign up for updates and specials at https://gotopia.tech/newsletter SUBSCRIBE TO OUR CHANNEL - new videos posted almost daily. https://www.youtube.com/user/GotoConferences/?sub_confirmation=1