New Postgres Tools for Analytics

On 7 October we will be gathering again for some Postgres and a pint. This time we'll have the following talks:

• Elizabeth Christensen from Snowflake New Postgres Tools for Analytics;
• Alex Kasko from DuckLabs (AWS) Analytics over Postgres data with DuckDB;
• Jimmy Angelakos from pgEdge ColdFront: Transparent PostgreSQL Data Tiering to Apache Iceberg

Block your calendars and come!

We are a very informal bunch, so hoping to see you and your colleagues there!
We do need to know the numbers, so please register if you are planning on coming.

This event is generously sponsored by Snowflake, a global data and AI company offering a range of data products, including data analytics, machine learning, and fully managed PostgreSQL databases.

WHERE
Doggett's Coat and Badge
1 Blackfriars Bridge, SE1 9UD
on Wednesday, 7th October from 18:30.

PROGRAMME
18:30 Welcome
19:00-19:45 New Postgres Tools for Analytics (Elizabeth Christensen, Snowflake) - Abstract below.
19:45 Food and bar snacks
Lightning talks
20:00-20:15 Analytics over Postgres data with DuckDB (Alex Kasko, DuckLabs (AWS)) - Abstract below.
20:15-20:30 ColdFront: Transparent PostgreSQL Data Tiering to Apache Iceberg (Jimmy Angelakos, pgEdge)
20:30 It's a pub, so we'll stay and hang out a bit longer — but feel free to leave whenever you prefer!

ABSTRACTS
Main talk
New Postgres Tools for Analytics (Elizabeth Christensen, Snowflake)
Let’s talk about some Postgres tools for doing large scale analytics on really big data sets right from your psql driver’s seat. We’ll hit this from two sides, first, doing analytics on huge tables in Postgres with approximation tools like table sample and Apache DataSketches and then, bringing in the pg_lake / DuckDB extension to do analytics on object storage.

Lightning talks
Analytics over Postgres data with DuckDB (Alex Kasko, DuckLabs (AWS))
DuckDB is an in-process analytical database, sometimes called "SQLite for analytics". DuckDB uses plug-in extensions to read data from various sources. In this short talk Alex will describe the implementation details of the "postgres" DuckDB extension, that allows to run highly-parallel analytical queries on data stored in PostgreSQL.

About Alex Kasko
Alex Kasko is a software engineer at DuckLabs (AWS) working on integrating PostgreSQL with DuckDB. He lives in Cork, Ireland.

ColdFront: Transparent PostgreSQL Data Tiering to Apache Iceberg (Jimmy Angelakos, pgEdge)
ColdFront transparently tiers cold PostgreSQL data to Apache Iceberg on cheap object storage, cutting costs while keeping rows fully accessible to your applications. Because the tiered data becomes columnar Parquet, it instantly unlocks DuckDB-powered analytics inside Postgres and direct access for your AI/ML pipelines. We'll explore decoupled mode, Spock active-active cluster integration, and the TLA+ verified protocol that makes distributed concurrent writes safe.

About Jimmy Angelakos
Jimmy Angelakos is a Staff Software Engineer at pgEdge and Significant Contributor to PostgreSQL. He organises the PostgreSQL Edinburgh User Group and writes software and books.
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