APIs play a major role in interacting with which technology that allows applications to run independently in virtual instances?

APIs are crucial for interacting with containers, as they facilitate communication between containerized applications and the orchestration systems that manage them. Containers are a form of lightweight virtualization that allow applications to run in isolated environments, enabling them to be packaged with all necessary dependencies while sharing the underlying operating system kernel. This design promotes efficiency and scalability.

The use of APIs in orchestrating containers, such as through platforms like Kubernetes, allows developers to automate deployment, scaling, and management of containerized applications seamlessly. This can enhance the development lifecycle by enabling continuous integration and continuous deployment (CI/CD) practices.

In contrast, while traditional virtual machines (VMs) and technologies like SOAR and identity providers also utilize APIs, they do not provide the same level of efficiency and resource utilization that containers offer. Traditional VMs require more overhead because they run entire operating systems alongside applications, leading to increased resource consumption. SOAR may utilize APIs for integration and automation within security workflows, but it does not focus on application independence in virtual instances. Similarly, an identity provider leverages APIs for authentication and authorization, but it is not related to the architecture of running applications in isolated environments.