Snowflake Summit 2023, a highly anticipated event in the tech industry, provided a platform for industry leaders, experts and technologists to gather and unravel the intricate roadmap of data management company Snowflake Inc.

With insightful discussions, thought-provoking analysis and a glimpse into Snowflake future plans, the summit shed light on the challenges faced by the company and its vision for transforming the data landscape.

“Snowflake is on a mission to break down data silos and connect the dots of diverse data types and query methods,” said industry analyst George Gilbert (pictured, left). “They are weaving together a tapestry of innovation, empowering organizations to harness the power of their data in ways never seen before.”

Gilbert spoke with theCUBE industry analysts Lisa Martin (second from right) and Dave Vellante (right) at Snowflake Summit, during an exclusive broadcast on theCUBE, SiliconANGLE Media’s livestreaming studio. They discussed the challenges faced by Snowflake and its vision for the future. (* Disclosure below.)

Connecting the dots: Integrating data types and query methods

Amidst discussions on Snowflake’s product announcements, the analysts talked about the company’s efforts to break down data silos and enable seamless connectivity. Snowflake’s unique value proposition lies in its data flow engine, which allows for diverse data types and multiple query methods, including SQL, traditional machine learning libraries and generative AI with Nvidia Corp.

“What Snowflake doesn’t want to let happen is an application platform to emerge above them,” Gilbert said. “They know this is an issue, they’re taking care of the data first, but they realize that … they need semantic layer, they need a workflow model that’s really rich.”

One of the key themes discussed was Snowflake’s goal of breaking down data silos. While the company aims to eliminate these silos, product messaging can sometimes be fragmented. Snowflake’s numerous product announcements, delivered by Christian Kleinerman, senior vice president of product at Snowflake, often present a challenge in connecting the dots and understanding the full picture.

However, Snowflake’s strategy involves integrating diverse capabilities to provide a seamless experience, eliminating the need for piecing together different components, according to Vellante. Snowflake’s strength lies in its data flow engine, which goes beyond being just a SQL data warehouse. This engine has the flexibility to interact with multiple data types and query methods.

“[Snowflake] wants you to put all the data into the Snowflake Data Cloud. The reason is if you do that, Snowflake can promise the governance and the security … irrespective of which partner is there, as long as they’re conforming to that Snowflake standard,” Vellante said.

Another significant aspect discussed was Snowflake’s approach to handling various data types through pluggable storage. While Snowflake communicates in terms of unstructured, semi-structured and structured data, the underlying technology goes beyond these labels.

The company’s ability to join different table types, including dynamic tables that can be updated from streaming and reference data, adds considerable power to its offerings, according to the analysts. Additionally, Snowflake’s integration of vector data allows for document shredding and storage as a graph, offering more expressive capabilities than traditional relational databases.

“The magic is that they’re able to pull from those different types, and then vector, then graph,” Vellante said. “You’ve got many ways to query; you’ve got many data types.”

Here’s the complete video interview, part of SiliconANGLE’s and theCUBE’s coverage of Snowflake Summit:

(* Disclosure: This is an unsponsored editorial segment. However, theCUBE is a paid media partner for Snowflake Summit. Snowflake and other sponsors of theCUBE’s event coverage have no editorial control over content on theCUBE or SiliconANGLE.)

Photo: SiliconANGLE