Sarah McKenna joins me to chat about all things web scraping. We discuss its applications, the evolution of alternative data, and AI's impact on the industry. We also discuss privacy concerns, the challenges of bot blocking, and the importance of data quality. Sarah shares ideas on how to get started with web scraping and the ethical considerations surrounding copyright and data collection.

I recently overheard someone say, "I Don't Need to Learn Anything Anymore" because AI would do all of this person's work. This got me thinking about the future of learning, human expertise and depth, and more.

Juan Sequeda and Jesus Barrasa are among the top experts on graphs in the world. In this episode, we chat about the definitions of semantics, ontologies, and the differences between RDF and property graphs, etc. We also talk about how AI is giving graphs a new surge of interest.

Data teams have had a rough few years. Lots of layoffs and cuts, doing more work with fewer resources, and a general sense of malaise. On top of all of this, now we're in the middle of a trade war. This is war. If you're a data team, you need to act accordingly.

Tim Berglund is the OG of DevRel. We chat about the art and craft of developer relations, hacking on hardware, and much more.

Just wrapped up a whirlwind tour, giving a workshop in Atlanta and then attending Google Cloud Next. B2b nonstop action, and I'm glad to home for a bit.

While at Next, I had a conversation with another tech old timer friend. We talked about how much we're having using AI as a coding assistant. I'm having fun coming up with wild stuff and seeing if it's possible to build with code. AI's made coding fun again!

📈 This episode is brought to you by GoodData. Design and deploy custom data applications and integrate AI-assisted analytics capabilities wherever your users need them.

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Juhani Vanhatapio lives in Finland at the Arctic Circle and is studying data engineering and machine learning. Juhani shares stories about life in the Arctic, the challenges and fun of guiding tours to see the Northern Lights, his AI Assistant for Northern Lights tourism, and his journey into the tech field during the COVID pandemic. This is definitely a very interesting and left-field conversation you'll enjoy.

I'm heads down with some work right now, but here are some random rants on workshops, the tariff chaos, and more.

Vin Vashishta and I chat about the current state of AI in business, the challenges of implementation, the pervasive hype surrounding AI technologies, influencers, and more.

Panel: How AI Is Shifting Data Infrastructure Left | Joe Reis, Vin Vashishta, Carly Taylor, Chad Sanderson | Shift Left Data Conference 2025

The rapid rise of AI has dramatically elevated the value and strategic importance of data, transforming how upstream software engineers perceive and interact with data workflows. In this expert-led panel, industry leaders will share their experiences and insights into effectively bridging the gap between data teams and software engineers. They will discuss practical strategies for proactively managing data infrastructure, enhancing collaboration, and ensuring high-quality data to support advanced AI-driven development initiatives.

Vinoth Chandar (CEO at Onehouse and creator of Apache Hudi) and I chat about the creation of Apache Hudi, the future of open data lakehouses, and much more.

hudi #data #ai #datalakehouse #dataengineering

People often ask me what I'd change in Fundamentals of Data Engineering. Usually, I reply "not much", as the the Data Engineering Lifecycle still remains intact. However, I see the role of data engineers shifting both left and right. What does this mean? Have a listen.

Vaibhav Gupta and I chat about our shared love for tacos in Austin, the evolution of AI tools, and why new thinking and approaches are required for AI-first tools.

BAML: https://github.com/BoundaryML/baml

Mark Freeman joins me to chat about data contracts, the crazy life of being the first employee at a hot startup, writing books and creating content, and much more.

DataEngineering #Startups #AI #DataQuality #DataContracts

I get a ton of questions from people about what their next career move should be. Given the increased turbulence in the job market and how companies are giving the middle finger to their employees, I think people are going to need to question the traditional advice (college, job, "stick it out"). This advice is outdated. Instead, you're going to have to dig deep, embrace discomfort, and figure out your next move.

Nick Freund - Closing a Startup https://open.spotify.com/episode/2Iu1qbVklm7hVFniVkdCFQ?si=bcc24223758b48d3

Willis Nana and I chat about the challenges of data engineering leadership, foundational skills, and his journey to a content creator on YouTube.#dataengineering #data #ai #datateam #leadership

Salma Bakouk (CEO of Sifflet) and I discuss the evolving data and AI landscape, the rise of data observability in the age of AI, balancing personal and professional life as a founder, and much more.

Jordan Morrow and I have a lot of experience with public speaking. We get a lot of questions about tips for public speaking.

In this episode, we chat about how to get started with public speaking, tips for awesome presentations and talks, and much more.

Simon Späti and I discuss various aspects of writing, data engineering, and the impact of AI on the writing process. Simon shares his journey from business intelligence to data engineering and his current focus on writing. We also discuss the future of writing in the age of AI. Enjoy!

Todd Beauchene joins me to chat about being an early employee at a tiny startup called Snowflake, modern data platforms, and much more.

In this episode, I explain how I use (and don't use) AI for writing.

The Data Cynic, aka, Matthew Kelliher-Gibson, and I chat about all things cynical about the data field, working in Dilbert-land, negotiation for data professionals, and much more.

My semi-regular co-host and bestie Carly Taylor joins me once again. This time we chat about the true cost of replacing engineers with AI. We explore the implications of mass layoffs, the importance of company culture, and the potential for burnout among tech workers.

It seems like quite a few data practitioners I talk with are miserable. Forced to deliver things ever faster, there's not enough time to THINK. Instead, the pressure is to deliver "stuff" in two-week sprints. In this episode, I rant about why not everything needs to be a sprint, and why we need to treat Deep Work versus Delivery Work differently.

John Thompson joins me to chat about his upcoming book, The Path to AGI, his book writing process, and much more.

John Thompson LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/johnkthompson/