Who We Are

Welcome to our data platform insights blog, where we dive deep into the evolving landscape of modern data architectures.

We’re Mahdi Askari and Joel Roland, two data professionals who’ve experienced the industry from the inside and aren’t afraid to share our unfiltered perspectives.

Our Journey

Both of us spent significant time at Databricks, where we gained firsthand experience with one of the industry’s leading data platforms. However, our paths led us to Snowflake, where we discovered a different approach to solving data challenges—one that we believe offers compelling advantages in today’s data-driven world.

This unique journey from Databricks to Snowflake has given us a rare dual perspective on two of the most influential platforms in the data space. We’ve seen both sides of the coin, and we’re here to share those insights with you.

What We Write About

Our blog focuses on data platform analysis with a particular emphasis on:

• Snowflake’s architectural strengths and why we believe it represents the future of data platforms
• Real-world comparisons between major data platforms, drawing from our direct experience
• Critical analysis of industry trends and platform limitations
• Honest assessments of where platforms like Databricks fall short of their promises

Our Perspective

We’re not here to sugarcoat or play it safe. Having worked extensively with Databricks and now with Snowflake, we’ve developed strong opinions about what works and what doesn’t in modern data architecture. While we highlight Snowflake’s strengths—because we genuinely believe in its superior approach—we also don’t shy away from discussing the shortcomings we’ve observed in other platforms, including our former employer.

Our goal isn’t to bash competitors, but rather to provide the kind of honest, experience-based analysis that’s often missing in a world full of vendor marketing and surface-level comparisons.

Why This Matters

The data platform space is moving fast, and organizations are making critical decisions that will impact their data strategies for years to come. We believe that decision-makers deserve insights from people who’ve actually built, deployed, and lived with these platforms in real production environments.

Whether you’re evaluating platforms, optimizing your current setup, or just trying to understand where the industry is heading, we’re here to share the perspective that only comes from being in the trenches.

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