You are falling into a common trap these days. There is a difference between API (remember the I stands for interface) and implementation. There is no reason a

You are falling into a common trap these days. There is a difference between API (remember the I stands for interface) and implementation. There is no reason a vendor can't completely change how drivers work without the application having any idea. There is nothing about the API that says it needs to push complexity onto the driver, but you are describing these implementations as inevitability.