GraphQL is a powerful query language for APIs that allows clients to request only the data they need. Developed by Facebook in 2012 and released as an open-source project in 2015, it provides a more efficient and flexible alternative to traditional REST APIs. With GraphQL, developers can define the structure of the response they want, making it easier to work with complex data. This approach reduces the amount of data transferred over the network and improves performance, especially in mobile applications where bandwidth is limited.