This document provides an overview of RESTful APIs and how to build them using Laravel. It defines REST as an architectural style for designing networked applications that use HTTP to perform CRUD operations on resources. The key aspects of RESTful APIs covered include using HTTP verbs like GET, POST, PUT and DELETE; including HTTP headers and status codes; being stateless; and commonly returning JSON or XML responses. The document also discusses authentication methods like OAuth and JSON web tokens that can be used to secure REST APIs. Finally, it outlines the steps that will be covered to build a RESTful API using Laravel, including creating routes, migrations, seeders, models, controllers and request validation.