database management Archives

Winsage

June 14, 2025

LibreOffice backs campaign to help users move from Windows 10 to Linux – and ditch Office, too

Microsoft will end support for Windows 10 on October 14, 2025, prompting users to consider upgrading to Windows 11 or exploring alternatives like Linux. The End of 10 initiative aims to guide users toward affordable options, particularly Linux and LibreOffice, as many existing Windows 10 devices may not meet Windows 11's hardware requirements. The transition to Windows 11 may also lead to increased costs and reduced user autonomy due to its cloud-centric design. LibreOffice, an open-source productivity suite, offers essential tools without licensing fees and promotes open standards, though compatibility with Microsoft Office documents may vary. The Document Foundation suggests three steps for transitioning to Linux and LibreOffice: testing the new platform, assessing software compatibility, and providing training for users.

Tech Optimizer

June 11, 2025

Lakebase Is Databricks’ Fully-Managed Postgres Database for the AI Era

Databricks has launched Lakebase, a fully-managed serverless Postgres database, following its acquisition of Neon. Lakebase combines the extensibility of Postgres with a modern serverless architecture, facilitating a unified data experience for developing data-driven applications while reducing operational complexities. Its core feature is the separation of storage and compute, allowing it to use cost-effective object storage for scalability and high availability, with low-latency access and high-concurrency transactions. Lakebase is built on open standards, making it a versatile relational database that integrates with the Databricks Platform for enhanced observability, security, and governance. Prior to the acquisition, 80% of databases on Neon were created by AI agents, and Lakebase's features are designed to support AI agents in problem-solving. Lakebase is currently in public preview.

Tech Optimizer

June 10, 2025

Snowflake and Databricks bank PostgreSQL acquisitions

Databricks acquired Neon for billion, which specializes in serverless PostgreSQL services and claims that 80% of its databases are generated by AI. This acquisition aims to integrate Neon's architecture into the Databricks Data Intelligence Platform. Snowflake acquired Crunchy Data for [openai_gpt model="gpt-4o-mini" prompt="Summarize the content and extract only the fact described in the text bellow. The summary shall NOT include a title, introduction and conclusion. Text: In recent weeks, the landscape of database technology has witnessed significant shifts as both Snowflake and Databricks have strategically utilized their acquisition funds to enhance their offerings in the PostgreSQL domain. Databricks Acquires Neon In May, Databricks, known for its data lake solutions built around Apache Spark, made headlines by acquiring Neon for a reported billion in equity. Neon specializes in serverless PostgreSQL services and has made a remarkable claim that 80 percent of the databases it provisions are generated automatically by AI agents rather than human intervention. This acquisition is poised to integrate Neon's innovative architecture into the Databricks Data Intelligence Platform, enabling developers and enterprise teams to efficiently construct and deploy AI-driven systems. Snowflake's Purchase of Crunchy Data Following this, at the beginning of the month, Snowflake, a prominent player in the cloud data warehouse sector, announced its acquisition of Crunchy Data for 0 million. Crunchy Data is recognized for providing PostgreSQL clusters that support both transactional and analytical systems across various environments, including managed cloud services, Kubernetes deployments, and on-premises solutions. Snowflake plans to leverage this acquisition to develop "Snowflake Postgres," allowing users to run any Postgres-dependent application directly on its data and analytics platform. Strategic Insights from Industry Leaders Databricks CEO and co-founder Ali Ghodsi articulated the vision behind the Neon acquisition, emphasizing the intent to attract not only startups but also enterprise customers. He noted that approximately 70 percent of their clientele operates legacy databases that are costly and stagnant. Ghodsi highlighted the eagerness of enterprises to transition to modern solutions that align with the demands of the AI era, revealing that extensive discussions over the past six months confirmed strong interest in the acquisition. Henry Cook, a senior director analyst at Gartner, remarked on the implications of these acquisitions for both Snowflake and Databricks. He pointed out that their historical focus on analytical systems positions them well to penetrate the operational and transactional market over time. Cook noted a growing trend towards the integration of transactional and analytical systems, where transactional data feeds into analytical frameworks, allowing for real-time insights and feedback. This evolution could enable users to create applications that blend both analytical and transactional functionalities. Impact on the PostgreSQL Community For the PostgreSQL community, these developments signify a promising expansion of choices and support for the open-source database. Robin Schumacher, a senior research director and analyst at Gartner, highlighted the challenges faced by data warehouse and analytic vendors attempting to enter the operational database management system (DBMS) market. While companies like Teradata and Vertica have struggled, Snowflake's introduction of Unistore has seen limited traction. Schumacher believes that the trust associated with PostgreSQL could provide both Snowflake and Databricks a unique opportunity to succeed where others have faltered." max_tokens="3500" temperature="0.3" top_p="1.0" best_of="1" presence_penalty="0.1" frequency_penalty="frequency_penalty"] million, known for providing PostgreSQL clusters for various environments, to develop "Snowflake Postgres" for running Postgres-dependent applications on its platform. Databricks CEO Ali Ghodsi noted the intent to attract enterprise customers transitioning from legacy databases. Gartner's Henry Cook mentioned the potential for integrating transactional and analytical systems, while Robin Schumacher highlighted the opportunities for Snowflake and Databricks in the PostgreSQL community amidst challenges faced by other vendors.

Tech Optimizer

June 4, 2025

Snowflake to acquire database startup Crunchy Data

Snowflake announced its acquisition of Crunchy Data, valued at approximately [openai_gpt model="gpt-4o-mini" prompt="Summarize the content and extract only the fact described in the text bellow. The summary shall NOT include a title, introduction and conclusion. Text: The recent trend of data company acquisitions shows no signs of slowing down, as evidenced by Snowflake's announcement regarding its acquisition of Crunchy Data. This strategic move, revealed late Monday afternoon, is estimated to be valued at approximately 0 million, although specific terms remain undisclosed as Snowflake has opted not to comment on the deal's valuation. Strengthening Database Offerings This acquisition is part of a broader pattern among major tech companies seeking to enhance their database capabilities, particularly in support of AI applications. Just last week, Salesforce completed its acquisition of Informatica, a company with decades of experience, to strengthen its data management tools for AI. Similarly, Alation acquired Numbers Station to provide its customers with AI agents capable of operating on structured data. Earlier this month, ServiceNow also made headlines with its acquisition of Data.World, further emphasizing the focus on AI-driven solutions. Crunchy Data specializes in providing tools for developers working with Postgres, an open-source object-relational database management system that is well-regarded for its compatibility with SQL. Over its 13-year history, Crunchy Data has collaborated with notable clients such as UPS, SAS, and Moneytree, as well as various public sector organizations, including the U.S. Department of Homeland Security. The integration of Crunchy Data's technology into Snowflake's offerings will pave the way for the introduction of Snowflake Postgres, an enterprise-grade PostgreSQL database tailored for its customers and partners, such as Blue Yonder and LandingAI. This acquisition not only enhances Snowflake's database portfolio but also aligns with the growing demand for AI-driven solutions in the current technological landscape. Snowflake plans to make this new technology available in private preview shortly. Vivek Raghunathan, SVP of engineering at Snowflake, articulated the company's vision, stating, “Our vision is to deliver the world’s most trusted and comprehensive data and AI platform to our customers. Today’s announcement of our proposed acquisition of Crunchy Data represents another reason why Snowflake is the ultimate destination for all enterprise data and AI needs. We’re tackling a massive 0 billion market opportunity and a real need for our customers to bring Postgres to the Snowflake AI Data Cloud.” This acquisition follows Snowflake's launch of new connectors for PostgreSQL and MySQL in 2024, further expanding its capabilities. Additionally, Snowflake's acquisition of data management company Datavolo last year underscores its commitment to enhancing its data management offerings." max_tokens="3500" temperature="0.3" top_p="1.0" best_of="1" presence_penalty="0.1" frequency_penalty="frequency_penalty"] million, although specific terms are undisclosed. This acquisition aims to enhance Snowflake's database capabilities, particularly for AI applications, and will lead to the introduction of Snowflake Postgres, an enterprise-grade PostgreSQL database. Crunchy Data specializes in tools for developers working with Postgres and has collaborated with clients such as UPS, SAS, and the U.S. Department of Homeland Security. Snowflake plans to make the new technology available in private preview soon. This acquisition follows Snowflake's recent launch of new connectors for PostgreSQL and MySQL and its acquisition of Datavolo last year.

Tech Optimizer

June 4, 2025

Snowflake digs out $250M to buy Crunchy to plug Postgres gap

Snowflake has acquired Crunchy Data to enhance its Postgres strategy, addressing a gap in its offerings as Postgres remains popular among developers. The acquisition is valued at 0 million and will result in Crunchy Data's technology being rebranded as Snowflake Postgres, aimed at supporting AI and transactional systems at an enterprise scale. The new product will maintain the flexibility of open source Postgres while providing enhanced governance and security. Organizations can migrate existing Postgres applications to Snowflake without code rewrites. This move is expected to promote Postgres adoption and complement Snowflake's Unistore solution, which integrates transactional and analytical data.

Tech Optimizer

May 27, 2025

AWS adds observability support to Aurora PostgreSQL Limitless

Amazon Web Services (AWS) has enhanced its managed Aurora PostgreSQL Limitless service by integrating observability support through CloudWatch Database Insights, allowing enterprises to monitor the health of their database ecosystems. This feature assists in monitoring and troubleshooting various AWS databases, including Amazon Aurora PostgreSQL, Amazon Aurora MySQL, Amazon RDS for SQL Server, RDS for Oracle, and RDS for MariaDB.

Tech Optimizer

May 24, 2025

Connect Amazon Bedrock Agents with Amazon Aurora PostgreSQL using Amazon RDS Data API

Generative AI applications are being integrated with relational databases, allowing organizations to utilize structured data for training AI models. This integration involves using the RDS Data API with Amazon Aurora PostgreSQL-Compatible Edition and Amazon Bedrock for AI model access and automation. The solution enables natural language queries to be converted into SQL statements, executed against the database, and returns results in a user-friendly format. The architecture includes several steps: invoking the Amazon Bedrock agent with natural language input, generating SQL queries using large language models (LLMs), executing those queries via the Data API, and returning formatted results. Security measures are in place to restrict operations to read-only, preventing modifications that could compromise data integrity. To implement this solution, prerequisites include deploying an Aurora PostgreSQL cluster using AWS CDK and setting up the necessary Lambda functions and IAM roles. The agent is designed to convert natural language prompts into SQL queries and execute them securely. Testing can be conducted through the Amazon Bedrock console or the InvokeAgent API, with options for tracing the agent's steps. Key considerations for this integration include limiting it to read-only workloads, implementing parameter validation to prevent SQL injection, and ensuring comprehensive logging and auditing. For multi-tenant applications, appropriate isolation controls should be established. To avoid future charges, all resources created through CDK should be deleted after use.

Tech Optimizer

May 21, 2025

YugabyteDB Extends Support for Document Databases With Postgres Extension DocumentDB

Yugabyte has integrated support for the DocumentDB extension, a document database-compatible Postgres extension released by Microsoft, enhancing its multi-modal database capabilities. This integration allows developers to combine SQL and NoSQL functionalities within a single database environment, facilitating the transition from MongoDB workloads to YugabyteDB and enabling vector search queries through the pg_vector Postgres extension. The DocumentDB extension is open-source and aims to provide a unified, vendor-agnostic solution based on Postgres, which is rapidly gaining adoption. Since its launch, DocumentDB has received significant attention on GitHub, with over 1.6k stars and more than 80 forks. YugabyteDB is designed for high-performance, distributed SQL database applications and is backed by various investors.

Tech Optimizer

May 14, 2025

Databricks Acquires Neon for $1 Billion, Boosting AI Infrastructure with Serverless PostgreSQL

Databricks has acquired Neon, a cloud-based database startup specializing in serverless PostgreSQL, in a billion-dollar deal. This acquisition aims to enhance Databricks' role in the AI tooling landscape and reflects a shift in the database market to meet the needs of AI-native applications. Neon, founded in 2021 and based in Menlo Park, California, had raised nearly million before this acquisition. Databricks CEO Ali Ghodsi noted that 80% of databases on their platform are created by code rather than humans, indicating a shift in database management driven by autonomous AI agents. Databricks has been actively acquiring companies to strengthen its AI development capabilities, having previously acquired firms like MosaicML and Arcion. Ghodsi emphasized that as a private entity, Databricks can make long-term strategic decisions without public market pressures. The acquisition reflects a broader trend of increased deal-making in the AI sector and highlights the growing importance of robust data infrastructure in the context of sovereign AI initiatives.

Tech Optimizer

May 14, 2025

Databricks to Acquire Neon, Targeting Serverless Postgres for AI Agent Workloads

Databricks plans to acquire Neon, a serverless Postgres provider designed for automation and AI-driven database interactions. Neon's architecture allows for 80% of databases on its platform to be provisioned automatically by AI agents, enabling rapid execution and unpredictable scaling. It can provision fully isolated Postgres instances in under 500 milliseconds and features instant schema and data forking. Neon's usage-based pricing model charges organizations only for executed queries, addressing cost inefficiencies of traditional databases. It is fully compatible with Postgres and supports common extensions, facilitating ease of use for developers. After the acquisition, Neon's team will join Databricks to support existing users and develop tools for AI-native systems.