QUICWebTransport

QUICWebTransport is the transport arrangement that uses the QUIC protocol to carry WebTransport communications between a client (typically a web browser) and a server. It is designed to provide low-latency, bidirectional data exchange by multiplexing multiple streams and datagrams over a single QUIC connection.

Technical overview: QUICWebTransport relies on QUIC’s capabilities for reliable, in-order delivery on streams and best-effort delivery for datagrams. Within a single QUIC connection, applications can open multiple bidirectional and unidirectional streams as well as optional datagrams, allowing different data and control channels to run concurrently. This multiplexing reduces connection setup overhead and supports dynamic, real-time communication patterns.

API relationship: The WebTransport API exposes a high-level interface for creating and managing a connection, opening streams, and sending datagrams. QUICWebTransport is the underlying transport stack that carries these WebTransport operations over QUIC. The API abstracts most transport details from developers, while QUIC handles congestion control, reliability semantics, security, and connection management.

Security and privacy: QUICWebTransport inherits QUIC’s security model, which uses TLS 1.3 for encryption, integrity, and mutual authentication. The transport provides built-in protections against tampering and eavesdropping, and supports origin-bound policies to constrain cross-origin use.

Status and usage: WebTransport over QUIC is being standardized and advanced by IETF, with ongoing work and experimental implementations in browsers and server libraries. It is intended for real-time applications such as gaming, live collaboration, telepresence, and other use cases requiring low-latency, multiplexed communication.

See also: QUIC, WebTransport, HTTP/3, TLS 1.3.