backend-as-a-service
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The Cloud With an Exit Door
Appwrite began as a backend its founder could not afford to host. Seven years later, that constraint has become the pitch: take the convenient cloud today, keep the right to leave tomorrow.
The Database That Learned to Disappear
Three Dropbox infrastructure veterans tried to spare developers from databases, queues and cache invalidation. Then coding agents arrived - and made Convex's opinionated backend look less like a shortcut than a new division of labor.
The Postgres Company That Let AI Write the Signups
It started as the open-source answer to Firebase. Then AI coding agents adopted it as their default backend, and Supabase doubled its valuation to $10.5 billion in eight months.
Directus
Directus is an open-source data platform that wraps any SQL database with an instant REST and GraphQL API plus a no-code admin app, letting developers and non-technical users manage content and data without building a backend from scratch. Founded on a project Ben Haynes started in 2004 and incorporated as a company in 2020, Directus has surpassed 30 million downloads and is used by organizations including Adobe, Bose, Tripadvisor, AT&T and the U.S. Navy.