The key requirements are that API calls should not delay UI rendering and it's acceptable to omit the API data on errors.

• Option A uses synchronous requests (asynchronous: false), which block the UI thread, delaying rendering. This violates the requirement to avoid delaying other parts of the UI.
• Option B uses asynchronous requests (asynchronous: true), allowing non-blocking UI rendering. Omitting the widget on errors aligns with the requirement to tolerate missing API data.
• Option C implements retries with exponential backoff, which is unnecessary since the API data is non-critical and errors are acceptable.
• Option D displays errors in the UI, which contradicts the instruction to omit the widget entirely on failures.

Thus, B is the correct choice as it satisfies both non-blocking UI and graceful handling of API failures.