2024-10-09
Expect big things from Microsoft Fabric in 2025. As a Microsoft Solutions Partner, Valtech attended the Microsoft Fabric Community Conference Europe in Stockholm in late September. This event brough together business leaders and data experts to explore the future of data management and AI. Have a look at our recap of the key announcement below to see how these developments can unlock the power of data in your organization.
AI is now at the heart of companies’ data journeys
The FabCon keynote opened by emphasizing AI’s growing importance in the business landscape.
Microsoft’s team stressed the importance of having a solid data foundation to truly leverage AI. As Arun from Microsoft pointed out, the quality of AI insights depends entirely on the quality of the data — garbage in, garbage out.
Microsoft Fabric is designed to solve this challenge by creating an integrated platform that unifies data engineering, analytics and AI, much as Office 365 did for productivity tools.
New certification exam for building AI-ready data teams
Microsoft announced the launch of a new DP-700 exam (available from October 22, 2024), specifically designed for data engineers. This exam will help businesses ensure their teams are fully equipped to work with Microsoft Fabric and maximize the potential of their AI-powered data systems.
AI-powered development
Several exciting updates focus on making developers more efficient, starting with a revamped user interface. The new design simplifies navigation, allowing teams to toggle between development tasks and insights more easily.
Microsoft also introduced task flows, blueprints that developers can use to streamline common tasks, and a Copilot integration with Data Factory, which will use AI to help teams build pipelines and troubleshoot issues faster. The goal is to enhance productivity while reducing errors and development time.
AI-powered data estates
Microsoft highlighted the massive growth of OneLake, which is doubling in data storage every 15 weeks. A key focus is on enhancing data interoperability, with new features like incremental data loading to reduce processing time and improve efficiency.
Updates to mirroring with Snowflake and the integration of Databricks via Unity Catalog are also aimed at improving data access and management. These features make it easier for businesses to manage structured and unstructured data in a unified, seamless way, reducing operational bottlenecks.
AI-powered insights
Perhaps the most exciting part of the keynote was the demonstration of Copilot in Power BI, where business users can use natural language to generate insights without needing a technical background. Copilot can now explain trends, suggest insights and provide citations for the data models used — all aimed at democratizing data analytics.
Another long-awaited feature is DirectLake semantic modeling, which allows developers to return to the desktop version of Power BI for modeling, an improvement that has been much requested by the BI community.
What does this mean for business leaders?
These announcements highlight Microsoft’s commitment to making data more accessible and actionable.
For businesses, Microsoft Fabric promises to simplify the complex task of managing and leveraging data, providing tools that help developers, engineers and business users work smarter, not harder. The integration of AI into these processes means faster insights, better decision-making and ultimately a competitive edge.
As these features roll out, the potential for real-time data analysis, streamlined workflows and AI-driven insights will create opportunities for businesses to innovate and stay ahead in the rapidly evolving data landscape.
The opportunities ahead
These developments are setting the stage for exciting opportunities. At Valtech, we can’t wait to explore how Microsoft Fabric will transform the way our clients manage and leverage their data.
To learn more about our work with Microsoft Fabric, have a look at our Microsoft Partnership page.
