A programming interface (API) from the Web Hypertext Application Technology Working Group (WHATWG) that enables Web-based programs to launch scripts that run in the background while the user interacts with the software on screen. For example, a highly computational task can be running in the background without causing interruptions in the user interface. With background scripts called "workers," Web Workers was designed to invoke one or possibly a few reasonably intensive background processes, not numerous minor ones. For more information, visit www.whatwg.org. See
AJAX.