ASGI, or Asynchronous Server Gateway Interface, is a specification that allows for asynchronous communication between web servers and Python web applications. It is designed to handle long-lived connections, such as WebSockets, making it ideal for modern web applications that require real-time capabilities. ASGI serves as a bridge between web servers and Python frameworks like Django and FastAPI, enabling developers to build scalable and efficient applications. By supporting both synchronous and asynchronous code, ASGI enhances the performance of web applications, allowing them to handle multiple requests simultaneously without blocking.