A transportation app automatically scales compute resources as ride requests arrive in real time. Which cloud characteristic enables this behavior?

Elasticity is the correct answer because it refers to the ability of a cloud system to automatically scale computing resources up or down based on demand. In this scenario, as ride requests increase, the app automatically provisions more resources, and as demand decreases, it releases them, optimizing cost and performance. Load balancing distributes incoming traffic across multiple resources but doesn't inherently scale the resources themselves. Geo-distribution involves deploying resources across different geographical locations for redundancy and lower latency, not automatic scaling based on real-time demand. Backup automation focuses on data protection and recovery, which is unrelated to dynamic resource scaling for real-time traffic.