Data integration tools like Airbyte and Airflow are used for extracting, loading, and transforming data. While both have overlapping functions, they serve different purposes. Airbyte is an ELT tool that moves data from a source system to a destination system, while Airflow is an orchestrator tool that schedules and periodically executes tasks in a sequence. Airbyte can be used with Airflow for better coordination of sync runs and other tasks. However, unlike Airbyte, Airflow is not a purpose-built ELT tool but rather an orchestration tool. Both tools have their unique features and benefits that cater to different data integration needs.