The Data Analytics Technology Updates You Need to Know About

Q3 2023 Product Release Updates

Here are a few highlights of new and updated features in Snowflake (either generally available or in preview) that we think are impactful to our customers. 

• Budgets and Snowflake Alerts: Surprises on your Snowflake bills are a thing of the past. Budgets allow for account-level monitoring and credit usage notifications for groups of specific Snowflake objects. Credit usage notifications not only notify on exceeded budgets, but also when credit usage tracks to overspend — allowing for customers to react sooner and prevent overspending. Other types of alerts beyond budgets are available as well, both for notification and for performing actions. 
• Table and Database Level Support for Tag-based Masking Policies: Leverage tag-based masking policies on databases and schemas in Snowflake when a data type of a column matches a data type of the policy set on a tag. This promotes data security and data governance because it allows for setting tag-based policies once compared to masking policies on every column in a database or schema. 
• Dynamic Tables: In preview as of June 2023, Dynamic Tables are the building blocks of declarative data transformation pipelines. They significantly simplify data engineering in Snowflake and provide a reliable, cost-effective, and automated way to transform your data for consumption. Instead of defining data transformation steps as a series of tasks and having to monitor dependencies and scheduling, you can simply define the end state of the transformation using dynamic tables and leave the complex pipeline management to Snowflake. They could be especially useful as a datasource for applications that require near real-time data. 
• Access Billing Usage Statements in Snowsight: Billing usage statements are available in Snowsight. In general, we want our customers to develop a habit of checking out the Snowflake Usage tab in Snowsight to monitor consumption, drill into specific organization, account, warehouse, and query levels to troubleshoot unexpected consumption patterns that appear on billing usage statements. If you need help with this, talk to us. 
• Extensibility Updates for User-Defined Functions (UDFs) in Python: Extend Snowflake to perform operations that are not available from built-in system defined functions. Lots of feature enhancements happened around Snowpark Python, Python UDFs, Python UDTFs, and Python Stored Procedures this quarter to increase support for extensibility. If Snowflake can’t do it out of the box, you have increased options for how to extend support for customization. 
• Network Rules: Snowflake now allows admins to create far more granular security controls with Network Rules. Previously, the only way to restrict access was through Network Policies, which are account-level objects that can allow or block IP addresses or CIDR blocks. Now, you can also specify cloud VPC endpoints. You can also specify if these are ingress or egress, which provides even more control over how Snowflake interacts with your VPC and users. 
• Cross Platform Snowpipe Auto-Ingest Availability: Auto ingest is now available for event messages for AWS, GCP and Azure with Snowflake instances hosted in any of the supported platforms. This allows for multi-platform collaboration and integration of data sources. This update also includes the Amazon EventBridge general availability within Snowpipe Auto-Ingest.  
• Streamlit Native Integration: Snowflake announced its acquisition of Streamlit in 2022, but up to this point apps had to be developed outside of Snowflake, tapping into the warehouse via a Snowpark connection. Now, Streamlit is a built-in option in the selection pane in Snowsight, and apps are saved within the Snowflake instance. With a few lines of Python, a developer can immediately spin up nice visualizations without the need to use a separate BI tool.   

Q2 2023 Product Release Updates

AI Advancements in Snowflake with NVIDIA Partnership: Snowflake has introduced two promising AI features to their product roadmap: Snowflake Copilot and Document AI.

• Snowflake Copilot – a “comment to SQL” feature that will automatically generate a SQL statement based on user input (ie –show me daily revenue over the last 30 days) and Snowflake’s knowledge of user data.
• Document AI – Will allow users to ask questions about documents stored in Snowflake and automatically pull information from those documents. Could be ideal for document scraping and converting data from pdfs into something usable.

These planned features, aimed to counter competitive advances from Databricks, Microsoft, and Google, are anticipated to enhance AI workloads run by customers on Snowflake.

Streamlit Integration and Containerization: Certain third-party SaaS applications can be run within a container hosted in Snowflake, enhancing data security. This positions Snowflake ahead in the data management sector, particularly with increased industry focus on data privacy and security. For customers, this translates to a better integrated, secure environment for app development, thus potentially consolidating the Total Cost of Ownership (TCO).

Managed Iceberg Tables: With this feature, Snowflake users can now manage Iceberg table data using Snowflake’s compute resources. This allows Write operations and offers similar performance to Snowflake tables, providing a superior option to other read-only external table formats.

Dynamic Tables: These offer advantages over traditional materialized views, including support for SQL syntax, incremental loading, enhanced UI support for table metrics, and dependency visualization.

Snowpipe Streaming API: This API aids in supporting workloads requiring lower latency, allowing data to be loaded into Snowflake from Apache Kafka or custom Java applications.

Snowflake Alerts: This feature, already being utilized by customers, allows alerts to be set up based on trigger conditions and frequencies, enabling proactive responses to data changes.

• A notable example of how Snowflake Alerts are being utilized: One of our clients had to monitor changes to their product setups constantly, as unanticipated modifications could impact their sales tracking and comparison capabilities. We set up Snowflake Alerts that notified them via email of any data quality issues on a daily basis, enabling them to review the changes and make any necessary corrections swiftly. This level of proactive management helps maintain data integrity and supports their business continuity efforts.

Q2 2023 Other News

• Snowflake Roadshow Events: Snowflake is set to host local roadshow events this fall, offering a great opportunity for customers to explore the latest features and network with industry peers. We’ll be attending those to our closest locales like Chicago – more info to come once we see the final dates and locations announced.
  

Q3 2023 Product Release Updates

Here are some of the standout new and enhanced features in Databricks (either generally available or in preview), particularly those we have identified as being of significant value to our customers.

• Databricks Assistant – AI-based programming copilot (public preview): The Databricks Assistant works as an AI-based companion pair-programmer to make you more efficient as you create notebooks, queries, and files. It can help you rapidly answer questions by generating, optimizing, completing, explaining, and fixing code and queries. This is an important advancement for how your developers can securely use AI in their day-to-day jobs to be more efficient and create better work products.
• Unity Catalog Updates: Unity Catalog provides feature discovery and governance. Many important updates occurred to Unity Catalog over the quarter to continue to bolster Databrick’s enterprise feature demands from customers. For example, you can now apply tags to your securable objects in Unity Catalog. Tags help you organize securable objects and simplify search and discovery of your data assets. Tags are an important way for organizations to enforce data governance principles in a practical way within data platforms generally – Databricks supporting it in Unity Catalog is a great way to standardize tagging as best-practice.
• Delta Lake 3.0: Delta Lake 3.0 introduces significant enhancements. The standout feature is UniForm (short for Universal Format), which addresses limitations with Delta Lake in certain ecosystems. Previously, Delta Lake had some compatibility constraints, such as with BigQuery, which exclusively supported the Apache Iceberg data lakehouse format. Now, with Delta Lake 3.0, you can set a configuration option during table creation to incorporate Apache Iceberg or Apache Hudi metadata formats into your Delta Table. This enables compatibility with sources that exclusively support these formats, like BigQuery. UniForm ensures seamless integration with any ecosystem our clients employ, allowing Databricks and Delta Lake to adapt to diverse toolsets. Delta Lake 3.0 also now includes support for Apache Spark 3.5.

Q2 2023 Product Release Updates

Delta Sharing & Marketplace: Databricks’ enhancement to Delta Sharing, launching the “Databricks Marketplace”, serves as a notable step in data monetization and sharing. Users can now share and/or monetize datasets, notebooks, and UDF(s) with consumers outside their organizations and across Workspaces. This innovation paves the way for businesses to monetize their data assets and streamline workflows across various teams and organizations. Customers looking to capitalize on their data assets or acquire new datasets for their projects will significantly benefit from this feature.

UI Overhaul: The new UI overhaul from Databricks unifies platform offerings, enabling users to access the SQL warehouse, ML Models, and orchestration workflows from a single side pane. The update improves the user experience by reducing the fragmentation of resources, streamlining navigation and accessibility. Customers using Databricks for their Data Engineering and Machine Learning workflows will experience enhanced productivity and usability, saving time and simplifying tasks.

Unity Catalog (US) Updates: Databricks has empowered users with the expansion of the Unity Catalog (UC), offering new capabilities such as ‘Volumes’, enhanced data lineage, and a UI space dedicated to Data Governance tools. These updates provide users greater control and visibility of their data assets within the UC’s three-tier namespace, making it easier to manage and monitor data. Customers can better manage their data assets, improve their data governance, and streamline their Machine Learning workflows, significantly enhancing efficiency and control.

Q3 2023 Product Release Updates

Here, we’ve outlined some of the most crucial new and updated features within dbt (either generally available or in preview), emphasizing those we think are poised to make a meaningful difference for our clients.

• dbt Mesh: dbt Mesh provides domain-level ownership with data governance seamlessly integrated, establishing a distinctive advantage by allowing organizations to easily adopt a multi-project architecture in contrast to competing solutions. This functionality enables distributed teams to break down extensive models, fostering collaboration across different units or departments and ensuring agility and interoperability.
• dbt Explorer: The launch of dbt Explorer in public preview presents a comprehensive view of all dbt assets, setting itself apart by prioritizing data discoverability and trust. The feature enhances resource location across multiple dbt projects, ultimately boosting user trust and efficiency in their data-related tasks.
• dbt Semantic Layer: Tackling an industry-wide challenge, dbt introduces its Semantic Layer to maintain consistent definitions across various analysis tools. This innovation collaborates with major partners like Tableau and Google, emphasizing the goal of uniform metric and query definitions. The outcome? Users experience a consistent, reliable data analysis environment irrespective of the tool in use. Talk to us if you’d like help to enable this feature in your current environment or plan.
• dbt Cloud CLI: dbt’s unveiling of the Cloud CLI in public preview offers users the flexibility to utilize their preferred development tools without being restricted to the in-browser IDE, making dbt a formidable competitor in the market. This feature enhances adaptability and efficiency for developers, allowing them to harness the power of dbt Cloud through their favored interfaces.
• Dedicated CI Jobs: By introducing Dedicated CI Jobs, dbt empowers users to select continuous integration for their job types, ensuring production changes won’t disrupt existing pipelines. This strategic move not only upholds best practice configurations but also keeps costs in check, ultimately benefiting organizations that prioritize robust, cost-effective data pipelines.
• Support for Microsoft Fabric and Azure Synapse Adapters: dbt’s new support in private preview showcases its adaptability and commitment to integrating with evolving platforms like Microsoft Fabric. While this collaboration is in its early stages, its importance is evident, marking a significant step toward comprehensive data solutions. The integration offers promise to users, hinting at a seamless data handling experience across platforms in the future.

Q3 2023 Other News

• For further insights, consider checking out Tyler from Analytics8 and Yannick from Roche’s talk at the dbt Coalesce.
• Check out last year’s dbt Coalesce discussion on dimensional modeling’s relevance, it continues to resonate with many on their modern data stack journey.
• Stay tuned for our dbt Meetup in early 2024 at our new office in Chicago, IL. Interested in presenting? We’re eager to connect!
• Read all the product news from dbt from Coalesce 2023 here.

Q2 2023 Product Release Updates

• dbt-core v1.5 marks a major milestone with its focus on multi-project deployments. The most significant enhancements relate to model governance, including access controls, model contracts, and model versioning. These advancements lay the foundation for upcoming releases, enabling stateful input from multiple dbt projects. This will facilitate stateful comparisons across projects, bringing more robustness to data operations and catering to the needs of large organizations maintaining multiple dbt projects.
• The recently released Discovery API is a game-changer for data understanding and pipeline optimization. By providing granular insights into the data generated by jobs and the deployment process, the Discovery API enables faster data discovery, better data quality, and eases pipeline optimization. This is particularly valuable for dbt Cloud customers dealing with complex refresh use cases, as it provides comprehensive insights into the reliability of dbt projects.

Q2 2023 Other News

• Analytics8 continues to host the dbt Chicago Meetup, a forum for data professionals to network and learn advanced dbt concepts through hands-on presentations. The next meetup is scheduled for Thursday, August 10th. Keep an eye on the #local-chicago channel in dbt Slack or LinkedIn for further updates.
• We are speaking at Coalesce! Make sure to register for a chance to gain valuable insights and connect with fellow dbt users.
• Analytics8 contributed to the dbt-core open-source project. Learn more

Q3 2023 Product Release Updates

We have highlighted several of the latest and improved features in BigQuery (either generally available or in preview), with a focus on those we deem to be particularly impactful for our customer base.

• Duet AI: Duet AI, available in Google Cloud, assists in completing, generating, and explaining SQL queries. This enhances the developer experience and potentially attracts a user base that values AI integrations in their tools.
• BigQuery DataFrames: The new Python API, BigQuery DataFrames, allows data analysis and machine learning with partial scikit-learn and pandas compatibility. This feature aims to cater to data scientists and advanced developers by offering an integrated environment within BigQuery.
• Multi-Region, Data Movement, and Federation Enhancements: BigQuery’s new features for data replication, transfer, and federation across different regions and platforms address the needs of businesses with expansive operations and data across multiple regions.
• Data Warehouse Migration Guide Updates: BigQuery has updated migration guides for several platforms including Teradata, Hive, Netezza, and Oracle. These guides assist organizations looking to transition their operations to BigQuery from other platforms.
• Billing Flexibility Update
  BigQuery’s ‘Physical Bytes Storage Billing’ offers a potential cost-saving solution for clients with large data volumes.
• SQL Enhancements
  Enhanced SQL capabilities, especially expanded functions for JSON manipulation, aim to provide more tools and functionalities for developers.

Q2 2023 Product Release Updates

• The BigQuery partitioning and clustering recommender is now in preview, with the potential to revolutionize cost management. It uses a table’s workload data from the past 30 days to recommend cost-saving actions, which can be accessed directly via the BigQuery UI or the recommender API. This feature can significantly reduce the time and effort spent on manual optimization, directly impacting the monthly GCP bill of our customers.
• Primary and foreign key table constraints have been made generally available, enabling better query optimization and documentation. These non-enforced constraints can be managed through the BigQuery API and viewed in the BigQuery console. This update is set to make BigQuery more compatible with other database systems and provide customers with enhanced understanding and control over their data relationships.
• While we’re excited about the potential of Dataform, there are still some limitations to be aware of. A key enhancement is needed to allow for compatibility between the regions of Dataform instances and dataset regions. Misalignments of regions between dataset and Dataform can impede the efficiency of Dataform ELT architecture design. This improved clarification can help customers avoid unexpected issues and resource waste in the project planning stage.

Q2 2023 Other News

• Google Next conference is scheduled for August 29-31 in San Francisco. We encourage customers interested in the latest in cloud technology and services to attend.
• For a more comprehensive view of updates and changes, customers can refer to the BigQuery Release Notes. Regular consultation of these notes can help customers stay up to date and make the most of their BigQuery experience.

Q3 2023 Product Release Updates

In this section, we’re spotlighting a handful of new and updated functionalities in Looker (either generally available or in preview), pinpointing those we believe hold substantial value for our clientele.

• AND/OR Filters Available in Explores: Looker’s major overhaul this quarter introduced flexibility in querying with the new filter dropdown in Explores. Users can now seamlessly create ‘OR’ conditions without the need for custom filter expression logic. This enhancement not only streamlines the Explore experience but also reflects Looker’s commitment to addressing long-standing user feedback. The immediate impact? Customers can now leverage complex filter logic directly through UI controls, ensuring uninterrupted Looker content development, even for those niche use cases requiring AND/OR filters.
• Granular Admin Access: Looker has expanded permissions, enabling users to manage specific parts of the platform traditionally reserved for Admins. This strategic move not only aligns Looker with standard security practices but also makes it adept at handling enterprise-level user volumes. By decentralizing responsibilities, larger Looker instances can distribute tasks like user group assignments, preventing the bottleneck of few individuals addressing all requests. The long-term vision? Further refinement of these roles in upcoming quarters.

Q3 2023 Other News

• Google’s “Next” conference took place this quarter, offering invaluable insights in regard to both Looker and other Google Data products. Missed it? Catch the recordings while they last at https://cloud.withgoogle.com/next.

Q2 2023 Product Release Updates

• This quarter, Looker phased out legacy dashboards and YAML projects, in line with customers’ transition over the past few years. The change allows Looker to redirect its resources away from maintaining these legacy features, and instead, focus on advancing the product.
• The Looker to Power BI Connector has now reached general availability, marking the first non-Google BI connector to achieve this status. This development represents Looker’s progress toward expanding the use of its modeling language — LookML — in other tools. Users can now explore modeled data through Power BI, enhancing the potential utility of Looker’s offering. This advancement is particularly beneficial for customers who use both Looker and Power BI, enabling them to optimize the strengths of both platforms. Users with other BI tools should stay tuned for potential integration of Looker’s features in their preferred tools.

Q3 2023 Product Release Updates

Below is a selection of the most significant new and enhanced features within Qlik (now either generally available or in preview) that stand out in terms of their potential benefits to our users.

• AI & Natural Language Improvements: Qlik has unveiled several updates to its natural language insights capabilities, positioning the company as a key player of data literacy tools in the competitive landscape. These enhancements, like the improved NL Insights object and the Insight Advisor Expression Generation, allow users to gain high-level insights automatically and in plain language, reducing barriers for self-service users and accelerating development. As a direct impact on customers, these features will not only enhance their overall user experience but also empower them to extract meaningful takeaways from their data more efficiently.
• Advanced Scripting Features: With the introduction of features like Window Functions and Tenant Attribute Function, Qlik is aligning its offerings more closely with the demands of advanced developers, many of whom come from a SQL background. This competitive edge allows for more efficient development processes and less code complexity. For Qlik’s users, these functionalities mean reduced complexity in data handling, more flexibility in application management across different spaces, and a smoother workflow for data processing tasks.
• Continued Improvements to Qlik Data Integration & Catalog: Qlik continues to be a key player in the realm of data integration, with updates such as the Business Glossary Improvements and Qlik Cloud Data Integration connectors. These updates, especially the direct inclusion of governed data KPIs and definitions into applications, bolster Qlik’s stance as a comprehensive data management solution provider. For customers, this translates to increased data awareness, a broader range of connectivity options, and overall improved data management workflows.

Q3 2023 Other News

• Changes to Qlik Cloud’s Pricing Model: Qlik will now use a capacity model which will change how Qlik Cloud plans may be structured. For more information, please referencing the updated Qlik Cloud pricing plans: https://www.qlik.com/us/pricing

Q2 2023 Product Release Updates

Co-development and Version Control: Qlik has updated its user collaboration process by allowing co-development and version control in applications. This enhancement enables multiple users to concurrently edit the data load editor in an application, regardless of ownership, thus significantly improving team collaboration. Changes are saved as version history, allowing users to revert to earlier versions if required. This advancement streamlines the application development process and reduces the workload for individual developers, thereby driving efficiency in app development and management.

Business Glossary Connected with Master Measures: With a focus on improving data governance and organization capabilities, Qlik has integrated the in-app organizing mechanism (master dimensions and measures) with the platform-wide organizing mechanism (the business glossary). This step further simplifies data management, promoting better data literacy and trust in the data being presented. This improvement is particularly significant in the current climate of increased demand for robust data governance services.

Additional Connectors: In its ongoing commitment to maintaining an open ecosystem, Qlik has introduced several new connectors, including Open AI and Google Analytics 4. The addition of these connectors not only expands the potential Qlik user base but also underscores Qlik’s dedication to integrating a wide range of data sources, making data integration more seamless for the users.

Stylistic Updates: Qlik has also made the following stylistic updates in Q2:

• Legend Styling: New styling options are available for font family, size, and color for titles and labels.
• Hide or Show Measures in Bar Chart based on conditions: App developers can now hide or show a toggle switch in charts based on a calculation condition. This gives them more control and customization over their bar charts.
• Chart Animation: App developers can now turn on animations for bullet and line charts. Animations are a gradual transition between an old view to a new view after the data has been changed (upon the change of a selection for example).
• Styling for Buttons: Developers can change the font, labels, and layout of button objects.
• Personalized Straight Tables: The new straight table significantly boosts self service capabilities through chart exploration. Users can add, remove, and reorder columns and then download, subscribe or bookmark their new self-serviced layout.

Q2 2023 Other News

Qlik’s acquisition of Talend has been officially confirmed. This strategic move is set to enhance Qlik’s capabilities in data integration and integrity, thereby providing customers with more comprehensive solutions for their data needs.

Q3 2023 Product Release Updates

Here, we’ve outlined some of the most crucial new and updated features within Tableau (either generally available or in preview), emphasizing those we think are poised to make a meaningful difference for our users.

• Change in Product Release Cadence: Tableau has transitioned from 4 to 3 annual updates, allowing for robust development and more thorough testing. This strategic shift aims to present users with more refined features, ensuring a smoother experience with fewer potential issues.
• Dynamic Axis Ranges: An enhancement that allows visualizations to utilize parameter values for setting axis ranges, this feature is an extension of the Dynamic Axis Titles, aiming to offer data consumers more control. The result is clearer, more tailored insights, enhancing user customization and precision in data visualization.
• Custom Data Labels: This feature enables Creators and Explorers to set custom labels for data assets, underlining their commitment to deeper data comprehension. Users will benefit from better categorization, streamlining analysis, and ensuring accurate interpretations.

Q3 2023 Other News

• Tableau Pulse: Debuted at Tableau Conference, Tableau Pulse is a suite of capabilities that bring trusted generative AI to the entire Tableau platform to simplify and democratize data analysis and insight consumption at scale. This highly anticipated product is scheduled to be released in December 2023. 

Q2 2023 Product Release Updates

Google Analytics 4 Support: The inclusion of Google Analytics GA4 Connector in Tableau Exchange empowers users to connect directly to event data in a GA4 property. This direct link is set to boost the competitive edge of organizations that utilize both Google Analytics and Tableau.

Tableau Prep Enhancements: With the support for no-code, multi-row table calculations, Tableau Prep has been upgraded to become an even stronger contender against other ETL tools in the market. This makes it easier than ever for users to perform calculations during the data cleansing and preparation stage, streamlining report development.

Lineage Updates: Enhancements to Tableau’s Lineage page, a metadata management tool, allow users to filter and sort fields of interest. This is a pivotal first step toward more valuable upgrades in the features included in Tableau’s Data Management add-on, providing better visibility into organizational metadata.

Total Shares Metric: Tableau has introduced a “Total Shares” metric in the Usage tab, facilitating a clearer understanding of user engagement with visualizations (vizzes). This metric helps developers and analysts create more targeted content for their audience.

Q3 2023 Product Release Updates

Here are some of the standout new and enhanced features in Power BI (either generally available or in preview), particularly those we have identified as being of significant value to our customers.

• Report View Layout Switcher (August): Power BI introduced the dynamic capability to transition between Web view and Mobile view within Report View, available at the screen’s bottom left. This enhancement stems from Microsoft’s renewed focus on optimizing Power BI Mobile, catering to on-the-go data consumers. The outcome is dual fold: developers enjoy streamlined report creation for both formats, and end users benefit from tailored viewing experiences, bolstering overall satisfaction with the analytics product.
• XMLA Write Support for Datasets (August): Direct Lake datasets in Power BI now boast XMLA Write support, heralding a paradigm shift. Such integration facilitates multiple tools and methodologies to liaise with Power BI’s data, paving the way for expansive dataset management within Direct Lake. From deployments and customization to version control and more, developers now wield the flexibility to leverage an array of tools, optimizing dataset functions as per their comfort, provided the chosen method aligns with this feature.

Q3 2023 Other News

• Smooth and Leader Lines on Line Charts (July): Aesthetics get a boost with the smoother line rendition on line charts and the addition of leader lines for distinct data label separation.
• Relationship Validation in Power BI Service (July): Users can now modify data model relationships within the Power BI Service.
• Dataset Access in Power BI Mobile (July): Mobile users can access Power BI datasets on the move, tapping into dataset metadata, scheduled refreshes, and push notifications.
• New Dataflow Data Connection and Discovery (August): OneLake Hub unveils a refined method to connect or locate datamarts within Fabric OneLake, introducing Dataflow Gen2.
• Emplify Metrics New Data Connector (September): “Get Data” tab in Power BI now features Emplify Metrics as a fresh data connector.
• .NET 4.7.2 Framework Now Required (September): Power BI mandates users to transition to the .NET framework version 4.7.2 or above, discontinuing support for preceding versions.
• Mobile Canvas Interactivity (September): Enhancements in Mobile view allow users to engage with visuals, providing a sneak peek into object interactivity prior to publishing on the Power BI Service.

Q2 2023 Product Release Updates

Microsoft Fabric and Power BI Connectivity: Microsoft Fabric is set to replace Azure Synapse as Microsoft’s all-in-one analytics solution, integrating data lakes, warehouses, real-time analytics, business intelligence, and data integration. This release bolsters Microsoft’s competitive position in the analytics market by simplifying the analytics process with an integrated platform. It’s expected to be most impactful initially for early adopters of Microsoft Fabric, but as it continues to develop, it can greatly simplify and enhance the analytics workflow for many organizations.

Admin Monitoring: The addition of Admin Monitoring in Power BI Service tenant settings enhances visibility on how reports are being consumed across various workspaces. This new feature strengthens Power BI’s user-oriented approach by enabling more accountable monitoring of report usage, helping identify gaps in reporting, and optimizing reports based on user interaction, leading to more effective reporting and decision-making.

Measure-Based Data Labels: This feature allows developers to apply measures to specific labels in visuals, overriding the default data, making data presentation more user-friendly. By enhancing adaptability and user-friendliness, Power BI distinguishes itself further from competitors. The update also enhances report readability and understanding, enabling tracking of unique KPIs in a more meaningful way.

Q2 2023 Other News

• Dynamic Format Strings in Measures: This feature enables users to dynamically alter measure outputs for a more user-friendly display.
• Paginated Reports – Filters Available: Paginated Reports now support the application of filters within the canvas.
• Azure Maps now Generally Available: Azure Maps officially moved out of Preview and became widely available, with plans for future Map visuals integration.
• Integration with SharePoint and OneDrive: Power BI reports can now be saved, stored, and shared within OneDrive and SharePoint file libraries.
• Drillthrough Functionality in Paginated Reports: This feature enables detailed data views from summarized data.
• Query Limits in Power BI Desktop: Power BI now supports setting query limits on reports to prevent overload scenarios.
• New Card Visual: This new visual supports the use of multiple measures and provides a range of formatting options.
• OneLake Data Hub for Fabric: This feature allows for the reuse of Microsoft Fabric items and building datasets and reports based on them.
• Power BI Developer Mode: This new mode provides a new project collaboration tool for users that keeps files organized for easy access and version control.
• On-Object Interaction Update: This update allows for permanent embedding of panes on the right side of the screen.

Q3 2023 Product Release Updates

Here are a few highlights of new and updated features in Sigma (either generally available or in preview) that we think are impactful to our customers. 

• Column Level Security: Sigma introduced column level security to control access to specific columns within datasets, ensuring the confidentiality of sensitive data. By granting access based on user teams or account attributes, Sigma enhances data security, even in embedded reports or when shared with external parties. This strategic implementation brings Sigma at par with leading BI tools, ensuring Admins have comprehensive control over data visibility. For BI analysts and managers, this means efficiency — instead of creating multiple similar datasets, one can be repurposed with specific column access. Stay informed on this feature here.
• Input Tables now supports Databricks: Sigma extended its Input Table feature —   previously exclusive to Snowflake connections — to Databricks. Launched earlier this year, Input Tables allows users to generate tables by entering values directly into Sigma’s UI, interacting seamlessly with other data in a Sigma workbook. This expansion is pivotal; while Input Table capabilities are rare among BI tools, this Databricks integration caters to a broader organizational base, enabling features like scenario planning and forecasting. Dive deeper here.

Q3 2023 Other News

• Stay engaged with Sigma’s upcoming in-person events, the “Data Cloud World Tour”: Get all the details here.

Q2 2023 Product Release Updates

Connection to MySQL: This new data connector adds MySQL to Sigma’s repertoire of compatible data sources, reinforcing Sigma’s competitive standing in the BI market. By supporting connections to major relational database systems such as PostgreSQL and MySQL, Sigma is now more accessible to organizations that rely on these databases. For clients not yet utilizing a cloud-based platform, this enhancement opens the possibility of adopting Sigma as their BI tool of choice.

Map – Geography release: This update replaces the Map – GeoJSON visualization with the more versatile Map – Geography, allowing Sigma to visualize any column formatted as geography WKT. This enhancement, coupled with the new “Geography()” function, brings Sigma’s mapping capabilities more in line with major BI platforms that have added WKT and GIS functions. For clients who have been facing challenges with GIS calculations on disparate software programs, this update facilitates GIS analysis within Sigma itself, improving ease and accessibility of GIS analysis.

Q2 2023 Other News

Wurl and Sigma Webinar to be held on July 26, 2023: This upcoming webinar will delve into how Wurl is unlocking insights and monetizing data, the latest features and innovations within Sigma Computing, and the exciting possibilities brought about by input tables, application embedding, and the integration of data science and Snowpark with Streamlit. The webinar presents an excellent opportunity for Sigma users and prospective users to learn more about the potential Sigma offers for their organizations.