Today’s organizations manage an overwhelming amount of applications – almost 900 on average. However, only 2% of IT leaders say their organizations have integrated more than half of their applications. This lack of integration is poised to make AI adoption a challenge to many, as AI agents need a fully integrated foundation to deliver their full potential.
The growing demand for seamless customer experiences and AI-powered solutions has made integration more essential than ever. However, the challenge lies in choosing the best approach to achieve this integration. Should you invest the time and resources needed to build a custom integration solution from scratch with custom code, architecture, and one-off integrations or adopt a comprehensive integration platform designed to evolve alongside your AI agents?
In an environment where speed, simplicity, and agility are critical to staying competitive, investing in an integration platform is the smartest choice for businesses today. Let’s examine how integration platforms help teams excel in digital initiatives and how MuleSoft makes it easier for teams to focus on innovation with AI.
The challenges of building custom solutions
The decision to build or buy impacts your ability to harness the full potential of AI and defines your capacity to innovate, scale, and stay competitive in a rapidly changing digital landscape. Custom-built solutions can address unique business needs and integrate seamlessly with legacy systems, but they also come with some major drawbacks that hamper innovation strategies.
Organizations often underestimate the complexity and costs of maintaining custom-built systems. A retailer attempting to connect its e-commerce platform with multiple payment gateways might struggle to ensure seamless functionality across all endpoints. Over time, patchwork solutions also lead to integration and API sprawl – a tangled web of connections that’s difficult to manage and secure.
Another common issue is the lack of API governance. Inadequate API standardization can result in siloed systems that limit collaboration between departments. This is especially problematic in industries like healthcare, where compliance with data privacy regulations is non-negotiable. A healthcare provider that builds its own integration solution might risk non-compliance if it can’t stay current with evolving data residency or security standards.
Weighing the options: Build vs. buy scenarios
An integration platform can help you work around many of these challenges. These platforms are designed to simplify complex integrations by providing pre-built connectors, centralized governance, and robust security features. Integration platforms also offer scalability, which is crucial as businesses grow. Unlike custom-built solutions that might require significant reengineering to accommodate new demands, integration platforms can adapt to increased data flows, additional endpoints, and emerging technologies like AI.
Innovation and flexibility
Building a custom solution might seem like the ideal way to innovate since it’s tailored specifically to your needs. However, such systems are often expensive to maintain, challenging to scale, and prone to becoming outdated as technology rapidly evolves. When new AI technologies and updates emerge, teams frequently have to redirect valuable time and resources to reengineer integrations just to maintain compatibility. This constant maintenance cycle diverts focus from developing new features, improving user experiences, and delivering business outcomes.
Instead, an integration platform can simplify the adoption of AI Agents and other advanced tools. An education provider could quickly connect its systems to AI-driven analytics or tutoring tools. These platforms come with pre-built APIs and connectors, letting the organization focus on creating better learning experiences rather than troubleshooting technical issues. This approach reduces costs, accelerates innovation, and enhances scalability, ensuring the provider stays competitive in a rapidly evolving market.
Costs and resources
The build vs. buy decision also has significant financial and resource implications. Building a custom solution may seem cost-effective initially, but it involves ongoing expenses. These include hiring developers, maintaining software, and updating infrastructure to keep the system functional.
For example, a midsize retail company might make a significant investment in its first year building one-off custom integrations for its inventory system. Over time, they’ll face recurring costs for updates, bug fixes, and adapting to new sales channels. These maintenance efforts can divert IT resources from strategic goals, like launching an AI-driven recommendation engine. Even with the investment, the custom solution might not scale effectively as transaction volumes grow.
On the other hand, buying an integration platform offers more predictable costs. Platforms often have a subscription fee, which includes pre-built connectors, updates, and security features. For the same retail company, an integration platform could reduce operational overhead and allow the IT team to focus on innovation and the business’ needs. Instead of fixing bugs, they could enhance the customer experience, deliver business objectives, and scale the business.
The perks of buying
Custom solutions may offer tailored functionality, but integration platforms can get the same job done in a fraction of the time while also requiring less ongoing maintenance. MuleSoft simplifies integration, enabling organizations to connect, automate, and secure data from any system.
Unlike custom-built solutions, which are resource-intensive to develop and maintain, MuleSoft’s pre-built APIs, connectors, and automation tools make it easier for businesses to innovate at scale.
For example, instead of constantly reengineering systems to incorporate new AI tools or large language models (LLMs), companies can leverage MuleSoft’s reusable integrations to implement and adapt to emerging technologies quickly. This accelerates the deployment of AI-driven solutions and frees up IT resources to focus on delivering real business value.
MuleSoft empowers businesses to create end-to-end, orchestrated experiences by transforming IT assets into reusable digital building blocks. Whether it’s integrating supply chain systems with customer service tools for real-time updates or enabling AI-powered analytics in education, MuleSoft helps organizations capture new revenue opportunities, improve productivity, and reduce costs.
Thousands of businesses across industries rely on MuleSoft as a trusted partner to achieve greater agility, efficiency, and innovation at scale – proving that buying an integration platform is the clear choice in a world where technology and AI are advancing at breakneck speed.
- Agility: Custom-built integration solutions are often slow to develop and inflexible, making it difficult for businesses to quickly adapt to changing market conditions or adopt emerging technologies. MuleSoft’s pre-built connectors, APIs, and tools enable rapid deployment and seamless adjustments, empowering organizations to pivot quickly and seize new opportunities.
- Efficiency: Custom-built solutions are resource-intensive, requiring ongoing maintenance and significant IT involvement, which can lead to higher costs and inefficiencies. MuleSoft’s reusable APIs and integrations streamline workflows, reduce redundancy, and free up IT resources to focus on strategic initiatives, delivering cost savings and improved productivity.
- Innovation at scale: Custom-built solutions are difficult to scale and often require constant re-engineering to support new technologies or business growth. MuleSoft transforms IT assets into reusable building blocks, enabling organizations to implement cutting-edge features like AI-driven personalization while scaling effortlessly to meet future demands.
Case study: Sports car manufacturer uses systems integration to improve time-to-market
A luxury sports car manufacturer was struggling with a tangled web of APIs connecting a network of disparate systems. Without a unified platform for their data, the team lacked visibility into how customers interacted with the brand, limiting their ability to deliver the high-end experiences their clientele expected. The company had considered custom development before turning to MuleSoft.
By implementing MuleSoft, the company consolidated six legacy systems into a single platform, creating a unified API layer. This transformation allowed them to build seamlessly connected experiences across all customer touchpoints, from their website to mobile apps and in-person digital interactions.
Benefits of MuleSoft:
- 100% API reusability, streamlining development and reducing duplication.
- 80% reduction in data entry points, simplifying processes and minimizing errors.
- 6x faster speed-to-market, accelerating innovation and delivery of new features.
Choose wisely to innovate freely
Choosing between building and buying integration solutions is a decision that will shape your organization’s ability to innovate and scale. This is especially true in the era of AI Agents, which require seamless access to data and systems across all touchpoints.
Custom-built integration solutions can struggle to keep up with the pace of AI advancements, leading to costly reengineering and delays. At the same time, MuleSoft ensures that your organization can quickly connect, automate, and secure data from any system, enabling AI agents to deliver real-time insights and personalized experiences.
Download our complimentary whitepaper to dive deeper into why an integration platform is the smarter investment and how it can help your business thrive in the age of AI innovation.
