xAPI (Experience API), originally prototyped as Tin Can API, is the tracking standard that succeeded SCORM's narrow run-time model. It records learning activity as structured JSON statements following the actor-verb-object pattern — for example, a learner watching a video to 87 percent. Version 1.0.3 is the current stable release, maintained by ADL. Unlike SCORM, xAPI does not require an LMS to be the launch host; statements can come from mobile apps, simulations, third-party video platforms, or any system that can make an HTTPS POST request. All statements are written to an LRS (Learning Record Store), which can be queried independently of any LMS. For video learning specifically, the xAPI Video Profile defines a standard vocabulary of verbs and result fields — played, paused, seeked, completed — with progress percentage and exact timestamps, giving product teams a rich, comparable dataset across players. The trade-off is architectural complexity: you need an LRS, you need to instrument your player, and you need to decide who owns statement authority. The cmi5 profile was built on top of xAPI precisely to re-add the LMS launch and session rules that xAPI itself leaves open.
