iPaaS

Integration Platform as a Service — a category of tools that connect SaaS applications via workflows, increasingly with AI agent capabilities embedded.

iPaaS (Integration Platform as a Service) is the category of tools that connect SaaS applications by routing data between them via workflows. Classical iPaaS products (Zapier, Make, Workato, Tray) emerged in the 2010s as the answer to “I need this app to talk to that app” without writing code.

In 2026, the category has bifurcated. Traditional iPaaS — visual workflow builders for point-to-point automation — still dominates the simple use cases. AI-native iPaaS layers an AI agent inside the workflow, capable of reasoning, decision-making, and tool calling within a broader automation context.

n8n is the most prominent open-source AI-capable iPaaS in 2026, with both a self-hosted option and managed cloud. It exemplifies the form factor: workflows are the primary abstraction, AI agents are nodes within them. The competition includes Make (with native AI modules), Zapier (with AI Actions), and Workato (with enterprise positioning).

For B2B teams choosing between iPaaS and a dedicated agent platform like Lindy, the question is which abstraction matches the work: workflows-with-AI (Lindy vs n8n covers the trade-off) or agents-with-workflows-as-tools. The team’s center of gravity — engineering or operations — usually decides.