Mule is defined as a lightweight messaging framework functioning as an ESB. This ESB features a distributed object broker, which can handle interactions between different systems, applications, components, and services, irrespective of the transport protocols and binding technologies. Mule provides a Universal Message Object (UMO) API (inside org.mule.umo package), a way for components to interact without needing to know about the protocol or delivery mechanisms of information passed between them.

Mule can host standard POJOs, which can be managed from containers such as Spring, Pico, and Plexus or from the classpath, or any other source. Mule has a JBI interface which will compliment and not compete with ServiceMix. Mule and JBI functions differently in the way they exchange message formats.

JBI is XML and WSDL centric whereas Mule makes...