Today's Big Data Pulse
Leadership Gaps Hamper Data Engineering Teams, Survey Finds
Three 2026 surveys of 1,629 data professionals reveal organizational issues now dominate data‑engineering bottlenecks. In January, weak leadership direction and poor requirements accounted for 40% of top‑bottleneck votes, while by April 50% cited lack of clear ownership as the biggest pain point. Legacy systems and tooling were far lower priorities, at 25% and under 5% respectively.
Also developing:
By the numbers: Sensor Tower acquires AppMagic to expand SMB offering
Slim Chickens Hires Veteran Marketer Patrick Noone as CMO to Drive Data‑focused Guest Growth
Slim Chickens has appointed Patrick Noone as chief marketing officer, tasking him with using data‑driven insights to deepen guest loyalty and accelerate profitable traffic at its more than 300 restaurants. The veteran marketer brings experience from Checkers & Rally’s, Domino’s, Krispy Kreme and Noodles & Company to shape a disciplined, fast‑moving brand strategy.
AI Pressure Drives Yum Brands to Overhaul Data Estate
Even if you don't care about all the AI transformation stuff, it does seem as if this executive urgency is forcing companies to finally fix longstanding pain points. Here, Yum Brands is fixing their data estate so that they can get...
SAP Announces Dual Acquisitions of Dremio and Prior Labs to Bolster Data Lakehouse and AI Governance
SAP announced on May 4, 2026 that it will acquire Dremio, an Apache Iceberg‑native lakehouse, and Prior Labs, a Tabular Foundation Model pioneer. The moves are designed to give SAP a unified data foundation and tighter AI governance, positioning the company against...
Developer Eyes Broken Arrow, Oklahoma, for New Data Center Development
Broken Arrow, Oklahoma, is evaluating a potential data‑center project on a 51‑acre parcel between Creek Turnpike and State Highway 51. The unnamed developer has requested a pre‑development meeting, expected within the next four to eight weeks, but no approvals have been...
FDA Issues Final Guidance on Post‑Approval Pregnancy Safety Data Collection
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration released final industry guidance on how drug sponsors should collect post‑marketing safety data for pregnant patients. The framework outlines registry design, real‑world evidence methods, and statistical standards, aiming to fill long‑standing data gaps and...
Snowflake Launches AI Model Mapping Flood Risk for 1.2 Million UK Buildings
Snowflake unveiled an AI‑driven Intelligent Flood Readiness Model that flags roughly 1.2 million buildings in England lacking flood defences. The model fuses Ordnance Survey maps, Environment Agency data and social‑deprivation indices, offering property owners, lenders and insurers unprecedented granularity for risk...
Cloudera Unveils Zero-Copy Connector for ServiceNow, Cutting AI Data Movement
Cloudera announced the Workflow Data Fabric Zero Copy Connector for ServiceNow, enabling AI agents to execute inside hybrid data lakehouses without moving data. The move tackles the 80% data‑access gap cited in Cloudera’s Data Readiness Index and promises lower costs...
Japan PM Meets Palantir Co‑Founder to Advance AI‑Driven Defense Intelligence
Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi met with Peter Thiel, co‑founder of Palantir Technologies, on March 5 at the prime minister’s office to discuss integrating U.S. AI‑powered defense analytics into Japan’s emerging intelligence architecture. The brief 25‑minute dialogue has ignited debate over...
An AI Adoption Imperative: Centralized Sources of Governed Truth
Higher education institutions must shift from siloed data to centralized, governed sources to unlock generative AI’s potential. The article stresses that AI success now depends on “words” – accessible, certified data – rather than technical expertise. It highlights the medallion...
How to Shortlist Data Engineering Services Providers: A Side-by-Side Evaluation Guide
The guide presents a structured approach to shortlisting data‑engineering services providers, stressing governance, low‑latency logic, and business‑outcome focus over mere price. It categorizes enterprise needs into three maturity buckets—greenfield, modernization, and scaling—and defines five core evaluation criteria such as unified...
O9 Solutions Integration with Snowflake Advances Enterprise Planning on a Unified Data Foundation?
o9 Solutions announced a deep integration with Snowflake’s Connected Application framework, linking its Digital Brain platform to the Snowflake AI Data Cloud. The partnership enables continuous, governed data flows between Snowflake and o9, allowing planning models to consume source‑of‑truth data...
Speed, Not Data Volume, Wins in Insurance Analytics
The insurance industry learned this the hard way. You do not win on data volume. You win on decision velocity. Verisk rebuilt their analytics stack around one goal: how fast does intelligence reach the person who needs it? That is the real benchmark...
MongoDB Unveils AI‑Powered Production Agents in Atlas, Boosts Performance Up to 45%
MongoDB announced AI‑enhanced production agents for its Atlas DBaaS, introducing automated vector embeddings, a LangGraph.js memory store, and cross‑region AWS PrivateLink support. The rollout also includes MongoDB 8.3, delivering up to 45% more reads and other performance gains, positioning the...
Regulated Data Retention Demands Tailored, Not Blanket, Strategies
Data Retention for Regulated Industries: Why it Requires More Than a Blanket Approach https://t.co/nkZ11qbFU6 https://t.co/lfeGymQZsm
India’s SSE Launches M.Sc in Economics to Fuel Data‑driven Policy Talent
Symbiosis School of Economics (SSE) announced admissions for its 2026 M.Sc. Economics programme, a curriculum built around data science, machine learning and quantitative policy analysis. The move reflects growing demand from Indian governments, central banks and private firms for economists...
NHS to Grant Palantir Contractors ‘Unlimited Access’ to Patient Data
The UK National Health Service has signed a deal granting Palantir contractors unlimited access to patient records across its network. The agreement, whose financial terms remain undisclosed, aims to leverage Palantir's data‑analytics platform for AI‑driven health insights. Critics warn that...
AI and Data Modernisation Drive India's Tech‑Spending Surge, Boosting Consulting Demand
ETCIO’s latest survey flags AI and data modernisation as the primary forces behind a sharp rise in Indian technology spending. The trend is prompting strategy, implementation and change‑management firms to expand their consulting footprints across the sub‑continent.
Teradata Unveils Autonomous Knowledge Platform to Streamline Continuous AI Agent Ops
Teradata announced the Autonomous Knowledge Platform, a unified AI‑studio and data‑management system that runs autonomous AI agents 24/7 across cloud, on‑premises and hybrid settings. The platform aims to curb the growing infrastructure spend caused by always‑on AI workloads and bridges...
AWS Launches Rex, New Runtime Guardrails for Agentic AI Data‑Layer Security
Amazon Web Services rolled out Rex, a runtime guardrail system built into its Bedrock AI service that checks agentic AI actions against data‑layer policies before execution. The move targets the growing threat of prompt‑injection attacks that could let AI agents...
Microsoft Adds AI Prompt Risk Monitoring to Purview, Preview Starts This Month
Microsoft announced a preview of AI prompt risk monitoring inside its Purview Insider Risk Management platform, slated for later this month with general availability next month. The feature lets authorized security and IT staff review employee prompts and AI responses...
Microsoft Unveils Copilot Pipelines for AI-Powered Data Workflows
Microsoft announced Copilot Pipelines, an AI‑enhanced extension to Power Automate that automates data‑centric workflows. Early pilots show up to 60% faster deployments and a 30% increase in logic‑error detection, with a public rollout planned for the third quarter of 2026.
Eazyreach Launches Model Context Protocol Server to Feed Real‑Time B2B Data Into Claude
Eazyreach introduced its Model Context Protocol (MCP) server, linking Anthropic’s Claude LLM directly to a live B2B intelligence engine. The integration lets users query verified professional data in real time, eliminating the manual spreadsheet workflow that has long slowed sales...
SSRS Is Dead. Here Are Your Real Options
Microsoft removed SQL Server Reporting Services (SSRS) from the SQL Server 2025 release, signaling the end of new feature development for the platform. Existing SSRS 2022 installations will receive extended support through 2032, but mainstream support ends in 2027, leaving...
Grant Thornton Unveils GTAP, an AI‑Powered Audit Platform
Grant Thornton announced the launch of GTAP, a proprietary cloud‑based audit infrastructure that embeds AI, analytics and automation throughout the audit lifecycle. The platform will first be used for private‑company audits in the U.S., with a public‑company rollout slated for...
FDA Deploys AI Platform to Slash Tobacco Review Times by 70%
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration launched Elsa 4.0 and the HALO data platform to accelerate pre‑market tobacco product reviews, cutting backlog by roughly 70% and authorizing six nicotine‑pouch products in just three months. The move showcases AI integration in...
NIQ Unveils AI‑Powered Price & Promo Optimizer to Streamline Retail Margins
NIQ Global Intelligence (NYSE:NIQ) launched an AI‑enabled Price & Promo Optimizer on May 9, 2026, designed to centralize pricing and promotion workflows for manufacturers. The tool uses store‑level data to simulate scenarios, letting brands test pricing moves before they reach...
UIDAI Data Hackathon 2026 Draws 5,000 Teams, Showcases Student‑Led Big Data Solutions
The Unique Identification Authority of India wrapped up its 2026 Data Hackathon, receiving over 5,000 project submissions from nearly 15,000 registered teams. Student groups presented analytics on Aadhaar biometric updates, earning top honors and prompting UIDAI to consider making the...
Nvidia Invests Up to $3.2 B in Corning Deal to Boost U.S. Optical Capacity for AI Data Centers
Nvidia has committed $500 million in pre‑funded warrants and the option to invest up to $3.2 billion in Corning, funding three new U.S. factories that will expand optical‑connectivity capacity tenfold and create over 3,000 jobs. The deal aims to secure domestic glass‑fiber...
Show What Matters Now, Not Everything, in Dashboards
Teams spend months redesigning dashboards. New colors, cleaner charts. Then go live. Users still can't find anything. Nobody watched how they actually worked. "Show everything" is the failure. "Show what matters now" is the redesign. https://t.co/kR7EGpxd4g
FAA Tests $12 B AI System SMART to Cut Flight Delays
The Federal Aviation Administration has launched testing of the $12 billion Strategic Management of Airspace Routing Trajectories (SMART) AI system. Developed by Palantir, Thales and Air Space Intelligence, SMART is designed to forecast congestion weeks in advance and suggest minute‑level schedule...
Andhra Pradesh to Deploy Nation's First Unified AI Governance Dashboard
Andhra Pradesh announced it will launch a single AI‑powered dashboard that pulls real‑time data from multiple government departments, becoming the first Indian state to use such a platform for live governance monitoring. The initiative aims to streamline decision‑making and improve...
MongoDB Launches Unified AI Data Platform with 45% Faster Reads for Enterprise Agents
MongoDB announced a unified AI data platform at its London 2026 event, delivering automated embeddings, persistent agent memory and version 8.3 that lifts read throughput by 45%. The move consolidates vector search, memory and operational data to cut engineering overhead...
Snowflake Integrates Malaysia’s ILMU Sovereign LLM Into AI Data Cloud
Snowflake has incorporated Malaysia’s sovereign ILMU large‑language model into its AI Data Cloud, coinciding with the launch of Snowflake on AWS’s Asia Pacific (Malaysia) region. The move gives Malaysian enterprises a regulated, in‑country AI platform that respects data residency while...
Teradata Unveils Autonomous Knowledge Platform to Scale Agentic AI
Teradata announced the Autonomous Knowledge Platform, a unified suite that combines AI, analytics and data management to move AI agents from pilot to production. The platform is available now via Teradata Cloud and as an on‑premises Teradata Factory offering, targeting...
Enterprise Context Layer Now Powers Accurate AI Decisions
Your enterprise context layer - data catalog, business rules, process models, security groups, org model - was built for people. Now it's also the foundation AI agents need to make accurate decisions. #AI #DataGovernance https://t.co/iNfGKDSPeN
Acceldata Teams with ServiceNow to Embed Data Quality in AI Workflows
Acceldata has partnered with ServiceNow to embed its data quality monitoring into the ServiceNow Data Catalog, part of the Workflow Data Fabric ecosystem. The integration lets AI agents and automated workflows consume only vetted data, while incident context flows back...
Palantir Beats Q1 Forecasts as US Revenue Jumps 19%, but Valuation Debate Intensifies
Palantir Technologies reported a 19% increase in U.S. revenue for Q1 2026, up 104% year‑over‑year, beating analysts' expectations. The earnings lift sent the stock up 15% initially, but investors are now wrestling with whether the mega‑cap’s price fully reflects its...
UIDAI Data Hackathon 2026 Draws 5,000 Teams, Showcases Student Big-Data Solutions
The Unique Identification Authority of India wrapped up its 2026 Data Hackathon after more than 5,000 teams submitted solutions, with 15 finalists tackling Aadhaar data challenges. Organizers say the event underscores a growing ecosystem of young talent applying big‑data analytics...
Legacy Data Complexity Drives Project Failures
Project failure often stems from data complexity and the struggle to clean and map legacy data. Bad data cripples even the best systems, preventing effective business operations. #DataQuality #ProjectManagement https://t.co/nr84MpdrL0
Christophe Pettus: All Your GUCs in a Row: Autovacuum_vacuum_max_threshold
PostgreSQL 18 introduces a new configuration parameter, autovacuum_vacuum_max_threshold, that caps the number of dead tuples before an autovacuum is triggered. The default cap of 100 million tuples automatically overrides the classic scale‑factor formula for tables larger than roughly 500 million rows, halving the...
Datasite Acquires Valu8, Adding 70 Million European Companies to AI‑Driven Deal‑Sourcing Platform
Datasite announced the acquisition of Swedish private‑market intelligence firm Valu8, integrating data on 70 million European companies into its Grata platform. The deal expands Grata’s coverage from 20 million to roughly 90 million firms, giving private‑equity and M&A teams broader, AI‑enhanced visibility. The...
Accenture Becomes Official Business and Technology Consulting Partner for the WTA
Accenture has been named the official Business and Technology Consulting Partner of the Women’s Tennis Association. The multi‑year deal will start with a revamp of the WTA Player Zone, using AI and data tools to create a seamless digital hub...
Balcony Secures $12.7M Seed to Build ‘Digital Rails’ for U.S. Property Data
Balcony closed a $12.7 million seed round, bringing its total funding to $14 million, to develop a nationwide “digital rails” data layer for U.S. property records. Led by Blockchange Ventures, the capital will expand engineering, go‑to‑market teams and government deployments, addressing a...
Payscale Launches AI‑first Smart Reporting to Turn Pay Data Into Strategic Insight
Payscale introduced Smart Reporting, an AI‑driven reporting suite that creates custom compensation analyses in seconds. The tool aims to shift pay teams from manual data work to strategic advisory roles, responding to a 68% demand for compensation as a business...
Databricks Unveils Lakebase, a Serverless Postgres Engine Integrated with Its Lakehouse
Databricks has introduced Lakebase, a serverless PostgreSQL database that lives inside its lakehouse platform. By storing application data directly in Delta format, Lakebase eliminates the traditional ETL wall between operational and analytical workloads.
Unified Farm Data Layer Brings AI-Ready Agronomy Analytics to Agriculture
Leaf Agriculture has launched a unified farm data layer that aggregates inputs from major equipment manufacturers, soil labs, satellite imagery, and weather services into a single, SQL‑queryable environment called LeafLake. The platform leverages Wherobots to spatially process telemetry and imagery,...
AI & Data Exchange 2026: NIH’s Susan Gregurick on Overcoming Data Silos with AI Analytics
At the AI & Data Exchange 2026, NIH associate director for data science Susan Gregurick outlined the agency’s aggressive push to use artificial intelligence for breaking data silos and accelerating health research. NIH is leveraging AI partnerships with the Energy Department...
Clone TB‑scale Postgres in Under 6 Seconds
Ardent (@ArdentAI) let's you clone any Postgres DB <6s at TB scale so coding agents can test their code and engineering teams can ship fast without fear of taking down production. It's already being used by dozens of teams like Supermemory...
Google Cloud Cuts Cold Starts, Adds Sub‑ms Bigtable Tier
It's apparently "faster performance" Friday at @GoogleCloudTech. With faster node startup for GKE, say goodbye to cold-start latency https://t.co/NU88mzkOPj New Bigtable in-memory tier for sub-millisecond read latency https://t.co/s0GBEMEBQr https://t.co/2JdqpUcLmO
Retail AI Has a Data Problem: Here’s How to Fix It
Retailers’ experiments with AI‑driven checkout, such as Walmart’s ChatGPT pilot, revealed conversion rates three times lower than traditional web checkout, prompting OpenAI to retreat from instant checkout and refocus on product discovery. Analysts at Bain project the U.S. agentic commerce...