Salesforce's Mulesoft rolls out no-code data integration tools

Mulesoft on Monday announced new new tools and pre-packaged connectors designed to make it easier to integrate data from disparate sources, without writing any code. Powered by Salesforce's Einstein AI, the new tools will enable more people within an organization to "unleash the full power of Salesforce Customer 360," Salesforce said in a release. 

Salesforce launched Customer 360, its customer data platform, earlier this year. Though relatively new, the customer data platform (CDP) market is a crowded, competitive space. Salesforce, Adobe, Oracle and several smaller software vendors are all offering CDPs for brands that are anxious to consolidate their customer data into one place where it can be easily leveraged. According to the Connectivity Benchmark Report cited by Salesforce, enterprises have on average 900 applications, but only 29 percent are integrated together.  

• SEE: Salesforce outlines Customer Data Platform, aims to advance Customer 360 strategy

Salesforce acquired Mulesoft for $6.5 billion in 2018 to help customers connect all of their data, whether it resides in the cloud or on premise. MuleSoft's platform is used to connect software via application programming interfaces (APIs).

"By understanding the power of APIs and integration, anyone can accelerate digital transformation from wherever they sit within their company," Mulesoft CEO Simon Parmett said in a statement. 

The first new tool on the Mulesoft Anypoint Platform is Flow Designer, which uses Einstein AI to let users create integrations and automate business processes without writing any code. Einstein offers data-mapping recommendations to non-IT users. The tool removes the complex process of managing servers, logs and infrastructure. At the same time, IT teams can still monitor, govern and secure APIs via the Anypoint platform. 

Mulesoft is also introducing pre-built integration templates called Accelerators. The MuleSoft Accelerator for Service Cloud will give service agents templates to connect ServiceNow and Jira with the Salesforce Service Cloud and create tickets directly from Service Cloud. The MuleSoft Accelerator for Commerce Cloud integrates inventory and catalog data directly into the Salesforce Commerce Cloud.

Mulesoft is also updated the Anypoint API Community Manager, adding the ability to browse APIs, content articles, cases, forum posts and client applications through keywords and categories with API Catalog and Integrated Search.

Meanwhile, users can share integrations and APIs across an organization via the Anypoint Exchange. 

In addition to introducing new tools, Mulesoft is leveraging Trailhead, Salesforce's online learning platform, to equip more workers with integration skills. It's specifically offering resources related to API basics, APIcreation, API ROI and API ecosystems. Mulesoft says it will "skill up" 100,000 workers over the next five years. 

Prior and related coverage: 

• Salesforce plays multi-cloud game with Microsoft Azure, Google Cloud as AWS contract likely up for renewal  
• Salesforce launches new Salesforce Mobile App, Trailhead GO with Apple, exclusive iOS, iPadOS features  
• MuleSoft says its Anypoint Runtime Fabric will run on Google Cloud Platform  
• How MuleSoft patched a critical security flaw and avoided a disaster 
• The best API strategy is not to start with an API strategy  
• Salesforce launches manufacturing, consumer product goods clouds as it expands industry efforts