The journey to Dragons
Today we announced that Early Access for Tranquil Data “Dragons” is opening soon, and promised follow-on content throughout the week that you won’t want to miss. Before that, I want to take a minute to reflect on how we got here, and share a few thoughts with the community about where I believe data platforms will go in the next decade.
By background, much like a quarter of the world did this past weekend, I celebrated Lunar New Year with my family. I’m a dragon myself, and so we did it up. Decorations, family meals, and hours in the kitchen knocking out the hits (Hong Shou Rou, Ma Po Tofu, Hong You Chao Shou, whole steamed fish, etc.). Like many here in the US, we balanced that with a Super Bowl watch-party that gave me a little culture whip-lash.
The new year is a time both to reflect and look forward. When I think back to the origins of Tranquil Data I have to go back to insights from the earliest projects in my career. When I look at the state of the art today, however, it’s honestly not too different. The resources we have are radically advanced, but a lot of the ways that we define how data can and should be used are much the same. Tranquil Data started with a belief that we needed to step back, materialize the context in which we have and may use data, and reduce that to a new component that ensures “correct” use of data at all times. The First major product version did just that, providing our users a new kind of database that was wide open to support many use-cases.
Tranquil Data “Dragons” represents a massive effort to take that open-ended system, put it in front of hundreds of experts (from diverse perspectives like data, platform, privacy, legal, and engineering), and understand how to optimize the product to address what we see on the horizon. I strongly believe that the future of data is decentralized, and is also transparent. That is, you won’t be able to train an algorithm or run a marketing campaign unless you explain not just what data you used, but why you were allowed to use it. Tying data to purpose, and explaining to every stakeholder what they get out of the exchange, is the future of how data will drive our ecosystems.
What I’ve learned as we built Dragons is that explaining privacy policies and asking for fine-grained consent is not a UX speed-bump but a critical way to acquire users and apply their data. I’ve learned that personalized terms and privacy policies accelerate engagement, and that customer adoption is streamlined if you can prove that you’re going to meet the terms of your agreements. And I’ve learned that no one wants to deal with the headache that is compliance, but if you can invert that and create systems that ensure correct behavior at all times, everyone wants to use that to accelerate market value. If you’re a CEO and embed this view on day-one into your company’s DNA, the sky’s the limit. Welcome to the future of data.
