Alation and Databricks have expanded their partnership to provide enterprises with improved data reliability for AI-driven projects. The collaboration aims to enhance data quality, compliance, and decision-making processes within organisations, addressing challenges related to data fragmentation and inconsistency.
Alation and Databricks Strengthen Partnership to Enhance Data Reliability for AI Initiatives
Redwood City, Calif., June 10, 2024 – Alation, Inc., a company known for its data intelligence solutions, has announced an expansion of its collaboration with Databricks, aimed at providing enterprises with reliable data to support their AI-driven projects. This enhanced partnership, part of the Alation Open Data Quality Initiative, focuses on improving data reliability, compliance, and decision-making across organisations.
As businesses increasingly adopt AI technologies to drive innovation and decision-making, many grapple with challenges related to data quality, fragmentation, and inconsistency. According to Forrester, 70% of enterprises are currently leveraging generative AI, with another 20% contemplating its use. The partnership seeks to address these issues by improving the way data scientists, engineers, and AI/ML professionals find, understand, and trust data from diverse sources.
The deepened integration between Alation and Databricks introduces several new tools designed to safeguard data accuracy and reliability. These include trust flags, impact analysis, and comprehensive data profiling, which collectively ensure the consistency and completeness of data at scale.
“High-quality, trusted data is not merely a strategic asset; it’s the cornerstone of competitive advantage,” said John Williams, Executive Director of Enterprise Data at RaceTrac. He highlighted that Alation allows users to efficiently navigate complex data landscapes and make informed decisions, which is essential for advancing data and AI strategies.
Roger Murff, VP of Technology Partners at Databricks, emphasised the importance of visibility into the data estate for advancing AI initiatives. He suggested that the enhanced integration would deliver a unified view of data, improving collaboration and making AI projects more efficient.
David Chao, CMO and Head of Technology Alliances at Alation, pointed out that while proprietary data is crucial, its value is fully realised only when teams can effectively find, understand, and trust it. He noted that the modern data landscape presents significant challenges to maintaining data quality, and the partnership aims to meet these challenges head-on to expedite AI development and deployment.
Key Features of the Enhanced Integration
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Data Quality Monitoring: The integration allows users to monitor data quality metrics through Databricks Lakehouse Monitoring results within Alation. This feature helps organisations gain comprehensive insights into data health, thereby boosting confidence in AI and data projects.
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Data Quality Visualisation: Complex profiling and drift metrics from Databricks Lakehouse Monitoring are translated into easy-to-understand rules and visualisations within Alation. This enables business users to grasp data quality issues, such as null values, without requiring technical expertise.
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Data Quality Insights: The integration exposes data quality profiles identified in Databricks to a broader audience within the organisation. This enhances data accessibility and builds trust, allowing users of all technical levels to make well-informed decisions.
Upcoming Engagements
Alation will also be participating in the Databricks Data + AI Summit 2024. Attendees can visit booth #45 to learn more about ensuring trusted data for AI initiatives. Additionally, a breakout session titled “Delivering Data Products in a Data Mesh at Kroger” will feature Nate Sylvester, Vice President of Architecture at 84.51˚/Kroger, and David Sweenor, Director of Product Marketing at Alation. The session will discuss how 84.51˚/Kroger leverages Alation and Unity Catalog to access high-quality, AI-ready data.
About Alation
Alation, Inc. is a leader in enterprise data intelligence solutions, facilitating self-service analytics, cloud transformation, data governance, and AI readiness. The company serves over 550 enterprises, including notable names such as Cisco, Nasdaq, Pfizer, Salesforce, and Virgin Australia. Alation has also been recognised multiple times for its workplace culture and inclusiveness.
For more information, visit Alation’s website.
Note: Contact Lauren Lloyd, Director of Corporate Communications at [email protected] for further details.
