That: GraphQL is a mechanism for clients to specify the data document they want, and for servers to specify the documents they can serve. Datalog, or SQL for that matter, is a mechanism to expose data within a database. The GraphQL data model must be geared towards the end client point of view, e.g. some internal IDs can be hidden. Datalog on the other hand exposes the internal model of a data store, which is domain driven not client driven. Also you do not want end client devices to have the full power of datalog or SQL on your database, or else be ready to always watch those crazy queries that bring your server down to a crawl. GraphQL at least provides an indirection point where you can apply some form of resource control.