Chaos, complexity, curiosity and database systems. A place where research meets industry
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Passionately curious about Data, Databases and Systems Complexity. Data is ubiquitous, the database universe is dichotomous (structured and unstructured), expanding and complex. Find my Database Research at SQLToolkit.co.uk . Microsoft Data Platform MVP
"The important thing is not to stop questioning. Curiosity has its own reason for existing" Einstein
I wanted to take this opportunity to thank all those in the community who shared their condolence with us on the death of my mum and who celebrated the life of a remarkable person.
The National Museum of Computing is also a fantastic visitor attraction, recognised as one of England’s top 100 ‘irreplaceable places’, allowing visitors to follow the development of computing from the ultra-secret pioneering efforts of the 1940s, through the large systems and mainframes of the 1950s-70s, to the rise of personal computing in the 1980s and beyond. The museum hosts lots of events throughout the year and does not receive government or Heritage Lottery Funding. I feel it is important to preserve the past and help the museum with some ambitious projects in the future. If you missed the opportunity to donate there is a direct page where you can make donations.
I would also like to thank the #MVPCommunity and the team at #DataToboggan for there tremendous support during this time. #MVPBuzz
You can read more about my mum, Joan Frances Holt here
The Cadence Alpine framework was created from rigorous academic research undertaken to understand best practices usage of data byDr Victoria Holt FBCS. It was created before researchers had the option of using agentic AI. With the new Microsoft Researcher agent 'it helps you tackle complex, multi-step research at work, delivering insights with greater quality and accuracy than previously possible'. It was also created before 16 May 16, 2025 when 'OpenAI launched Codex, a new fully agentic AI coding assistant built into ChatGPT. Unlike traditional code autocomplete tools, Codex goes beyond being just a smart editor. Codex is OpenAI's series of AI coding tools that help developers move faster by delegating tasks to powerful cloud and local coding agents.'
The CODEX framework was named in 2017 based on transition and change into the digital age.
From the PhD Storybook
Cadence Alpine’s Strategic Compass for Data and AI Maturity
TheCODEXis Cadence Alpine’s guiding framework. A strategic compass that helps organizations navigate the evolving terrain of data and AI. It is designed to assess maturity, uncover blind spots, and chart a path toward clarity, resilience, and innovation.
The CODEX Framework (2017)
CODEX in Practice
Together, these five Alpen Themes: Control, Control of Operations, Data, Expediently and X (Unpredictable Events) form a dynamic map, not a static checklist. They help Cadence Alpine, and its partners assess where they stand, where they’re vulnerable, and where they can lead.
• The CODEX framework isn’t a one-time climb. It is a cycle of elevation. Organizations revisit each layer as they grow, recalibrate, and lead. It is adaptive, shows emergent properties and can help with complex or chaotic business that are affected by environmental changes.
• It enables the mindset of controls for data governance
• It is in the right place for EIM and EDM to start management of data assets
• It helps to transform the Executive mindset
• To stop unknown destruction of data and AI decisions
• To identify the hidden cost of data with poor data quality, ineffective decision making, out of data and inconsistent and duplicate data. In addition these compliance failures can mount
• Increase ROI by reducing inefficiencies
• Enables a strong Data base for intelligent foundation of AI, analytics and governance
Each of its five Alpen Themes represents a vital elevation in the landscape of intelligent operations. Each Alpen Theme has many Subalpine Elements which enable the breadth of complexity to be examined. These are:
Control (Business)
Focus:Strategic alignment, governance, and stakeholder clarity
Purpose:Ensures that data and AI initiatives are rooted in business vision, ROI, and ethical control.
Key Themes:Stakeholder mapping, governance frameworks, cultural alignment, KPI integration
“This is the summit where business vision meets operational reality.”
Control of Operations
Focus:Technical execution, system resilience, and process integrity
Purpose:Maintains control over infrastructure, applications, and workflows to ensure reliable delivery.
“The ridgeline where systems must hold firm under pressure.”
Data
Focus:Data quality, architecture, governance, and ethical stewardship
Purpose:Builds a foundation of trustworthy, accessible, and responsibly managed data.
Key Themes:Lineage, ownership, availability, responsible AI, metadata, cost control
“The bedrock beneath every intelligent decision.”
Expediently
Focus:Agility, learning, and adaptive intelligence
Purpose:Enables rapid response, shared understanding, and modular thinking across teams.
Key Themes:Microlearning, business glossaries, agile pods, architectural flexibility
“The switchbacks that allow us to move swiftly without losing balance.”
X (Unpredictable Events)
Focus:Resilience, foresight, and strategic adaptability
Purpose:Prepares the organization to absorb shocks, pivot under pressure, and lead through ambiguity.
Key Themes:Scenario planning, crisis communication, regulatory agility, thought leadership
“The weather system we must read, not resist.”
The strategic benchmark shows the business alignment index.
CODEX Business Alignment Index
The CODEX Ascent Is Iterative.
Philosophical View in Action
The CODEX enables the positioning across four forward-looking dimensions: Human in the Loop, Understanding Societal Impact, Economic Impact, and Learning Intelligence. This reflects how the company sees itself within each domain, based on its strategic framework and operational ethos.
SHEL Map
Each dimension is explained
Strategic Positioning Map Explained
A current positioning and aspirational direction are recorded each time the CODEX is run and mapped against other businesses in the same sector.
In Summary the CODEX is a strategic compass for navigating the evolving terrain of data and AI, guiding organizations through five Alpen Themes: Control, Control of Operations, Data, Expediently, and X (Unpredictable Events).
It enables businesses to assess maturity, uncover blind spots, and elevate their operational intelligence through iterative ascent and not a one-time climb.
Each theme contains Subalpine Elements that examine complexity across governance, agility, resilience, and ethical stewardship, forming a strong foundation for AI, analytics, and executive decision-making.
CODEX also positions organizations across four dimensions: Human in the Loop, Societal Impact, Economic Impact, and Learning Intelligence ensuring that intelligence grows responsibly and adaptively.
By identifying hidden costs, preventing destructive data practices, and aligning with EIM and EDM principles, the CODEX transforms executive mindset and increases ROI through strategic clarity and control.
I have the privilege to have been accepted to serve as a Global Ambassador for the Global Council for Responsible AI. As a Global Ambassador I will play a critical role in representing my country, supporting local engagement, and shaping international efforts for responsible AI development. Working with the Global Council for Responsible AI will help build a future where AI serves humanity and upholds our most important values. I will help them as a leader and have commitment to advancing ethical,
transparent, and accountable AI which is invaluable.
The Global Council for
Responsible AI (GCRAI) is the world’s most inclusive and expansive
organization dedicated to advancing the responsible development,
deployment, use and governance of AI. They are not simply observers of change; they are architects of the AI-powered future. With 72 global chapters and over 700
ambassadors, they are becoming the largest international governing body shaping
what it means to innovate responsibly.
Global
Ambassadors Role
Champions for public awareness and education who activate local and
digital communities, spark engagement, and support our fundraising efforts
to expand our impact.
What Makes the Global Council for Responsible AI
Human Dignity at the Core
They are stewards of human dignity, building technologies and
frameworks that honour the full potential of life.
Ethical Stewardship
They lead with living ethics that adapt to the needs of
humanity and the planet.
Leadership by Integrity
With representation in over 194 countries, the leaders
embody respect, service, and principled action.
Community Honour and Global Representation
They honour cultural wisdom, underserved communities, and
diverse worldviews, ensuring no voice is left behind in the future we are
shaping.
Gold Standard Workforce Certification
Through their exclusive certifications, they offer the global
benchmark for responsible AI readiness, combining innovation, ethics,
real-world experience, and proven career outcomes.
Long-Term Legacy Focus
They are shaping a legacy designed to serve life. Every
decision is made with future generations in mind.
The Mission
Shape the Future Where AI is Supporting Humanity in the
Best Possible Way
Who is involved
Visionaries,
innovators, and technologists committed to ethical impact
Policymakers,
educators, researchers, and stewards of human-centered governance
Founders,
investors, and builders seeking sustainable, principled innovation
I am incredibly thankful for the Microsoft Most Valuable Professional Data Platform Award this year. It has been an incredibly tough year caring for my very ill mother, who has sadly now died. Being able to try and help the community has been the one thing that has given me purpose whilst caring for mum. I know she would be so proud and pleased that I have been been recognised with this award. My grateful thanks go to Microsoft for the award and the community with whom I work.
Data Toboggan Cool Runnings is on Saturday 12 July 2025. Our first Cool Runnings summer event was in 2020. This was one track. Today we have 3 tracks of talks over a 12 hour period.
I am not attending SQLBits this year, the first time ever due to the sad loss of my mum the week before.
It is incredibly kind of SQLBits to set their charity in celebration of her remarkable life.
SQLBits’ charity of 2025 is the National Museum of Computing, the world’s largest collection of working historic computers, based at Bletchley Park. This fantastic charity has been chosen by longstanding SQLBits helper, Dr Victoria Holt, in honour of her mum, Joan Frances Holt (nee Clark), who she sadly lost last week.
If you would like to donate this is the page here.
Read more about her remarkable story and this remarkable charity here https://lnkd.in/gsjRpFMP
At this sad time I wanted to share that my
amazing mother, Joan Frances Holt (nee Clark), died on Monday after a 8 month long struggle with arterial
disease and blood cancer. A person who was always timid, humble and never
talked much about her accomplishments. She started out life being born at
the start of the second world war, playing on the streets decimated by
incendiary bombs in Portsmouth and only recently discovered more details about
her dad who was awarded the Imperial Service Medal (ISM) for long and faithful
service in HM Dockyards following his 20 years in the army. She was married to
dad for 64 years.
Seven months after leaving school in March 1958, mum started as an
Assistant Experimental Officer (AEO) at Aldermaston. A post normally only
available to people with degrees, but mums maths was outstanding and was
referred for the job by her headmistress at Portsmouth Grammar School. She
learnt to program on the Ferranti Mk 1*, with a list of instructions with their
binary equivalents, considered an old computer even then. The Ferranti Mk 1*
had a large number of valves requiring servicing frequently that could only be
run for a short time, which took punch cards. Mum worked on the very
latest, state of the art, computer, the IBM 704 mainframe which was among only
2 in the country, the other being at Harwell, mum thought. There were 2 people
operating the machine which had several huge magnetic tapes standing in
cabinets about 6ft high, a printer, card input and output machines and a
central console. Mum was impressed to work on this. She attended a
programming course on the IBM 704 and from printouts asked to draw a graph from
the information in 2 columns. The start of modern-day analytics. She
learnt how computers were constructed and how the data was stored. The
main content of course training included programming the computer to carry out
instructions using a symbolic assembly code, to read card input and produce a
printout of results. At the end of the 2 weeks, she had to write a
program to calculate sin x. She had to use the machines to type out the
program on punched cards, which were then converted to binary by an assembler
on the computer.
In contrast, Mum and Dad both were involved in amateur
filmmaking of cine films at Harpenden Cine Society in the 1950’s and 1960’s.
Walking in the lake district and travelling in France became a regular
occurrence for her, from her 20’s
A small snapshot into a varied and extraordinary life,
always an adventurer, and above all family centric and loved so much.
Microsoft Build 2025 took place from 19 to 22 May in Seattle, Washington. It was a four-day event packed with announcements on AI, agentic platforms, and developer tools.
This year’s Microsoft Build felt less like a tech conference and more like a glimpse into a future already unfolding. What emerged was a tapestry of tools and ideas woven not just for developers, but for thinkers, makers, and leaders who believe technology should feel like an extension of purpose.
Microsoft Fabric continues to evolve and not just as a platform, but as a philosophy. It’s now the connection between data engineering, real-time intelligence, and business insight. The new Digital Twin Builder lets us model the world as we experience it: layered, imperfect, alive. And with Cosmos DB now embedded in Fabric, the boundary between structured and unstructured data feels less rigid, more fluid. It was exciting to see SQL Server grow with another release.
Some of the data and AI announcements from Microsoft Build 2025
AI Agents & Copilot Enhancements
Copilot Tuning – Preview: Customize Copilot with your own data and workflows for domain-specific tasks
Multi-agent orchestration in Copilot Studio – Preview: Enables agents to collaborate across tasks
Microsoft Entra Agent ID - Preview: Assigns unique identities to agents for governance
Agent Store - Generally Available: Discover and deploy agents across Microsoft 365 endpoints
Bring Your Own Models (BYOM) – Preview: Use over 1,900 Azure AI Foundry models in Copilot Studio
Data Platforms & Analytics
Power BI changes enable you to chat with your data. The preview of Standalone Copilot in Power BI was quietly revolutionary. Now, natural language becomes the interface. It’s not just about data literacy; it’s about data empathy. A new Copilot-powered experience for users to interact with their data through natural language, across any inputs, semantic models, apps and data agents they have access to.
Data agents in Microsoft Fabric serve as virtual business analysts, which you can bring right into Copilot Studio and deploy across Microsoft Teams and Microsoft 365 Copilot
Cosmos DB in Microsoft Fabric – Preview: Adds NoSQL capabilities to Fabric Databases
Digital Twin Builder in Fabric Real-Time Intelligence – Preview: Create virtual replicas of physical/logical entities
Standalone Copilot in Power BI – Preview: Natural language interface to query across reports
Translytical Task Flows in Power BI – Preview: Enables write-back and automation from reports
AI Development & Infrastructure
SQL Server 2025 – Public Preview: AI-ready enterprise database with native integration. It is designed to securely power AI applications—transforming into a vector database in its own right.
Azure Cosmos DB Vector Search – Preview: Store and query vector embeddings for generative AI
Azure Database for PostgreSQL with Vector Embeddings – Preview: Generate embeddings via SQL for RAG apps
Azure AI Foundry Agent Service – Generally Available: Build and orchestrate multi-agent systems
Model Context Protocol (MCP) – Supported: Open protocol for agentic web interoperability
To read the complete guide to all the new and events announced this year look at the Book of News.
The rise of AI agents was at the heart of Build 2025. Not tools, not assistants but colleagues. With Copilot Tuning, organisations can shape agents using their own language, workflows, and values. It’s low-code, but high-trust. And with multi-agent orchestration, these entities collaborate across domains: HR, IT, marketing.
Open Protocols, Open Possibilities
Microsoft’s embrace of the Model Context Protocol (MCP) and the launch of NLWeb signal a shift toward an open agentic web. It’s a vision where websites speak in semantic layers, and agents navigate with nuance. HTML gave us structure; NLWeb may give us meaning.
Discovery and the Scientific Imagination
Perhaps the most exciting announcement was Microsoft Discovery. An agentic platform for research and development offering a new enterprise agentic platform, which uses specialized agents and graph-based knowledge to accelerate research and development for scientists.
Build 2025 wasn’t just about what’s new. It was about what’s next and who gets to shape it.
The eighth edition of the AI Index report is out. The 2025 Index is the most comprehensive to date as AI’s influence across society, the economy, and global governance continues to intensify
In the report it covers
in-depth analyses of the evolving landscape of AI hardware
novel estimates of inference costs
new analyses of AI publication and patenting trends.
fresh data on corporate adoption of responsible AI practices
expanded coverage of AI’s growing role in science and medicine.
The Microsoft AI Skills Fest is starting from 8 April 2025 to 28 May 2025 to enhance your AI skills and unlock the future. From experiential content to hackathons, there is a lot of opportunity to learn at all levels.
Fabric Data Factory enables data ingestion through applying data transformations, and orchestrating different data-related activities for modern data management architectures. There were many new features added such as
General availability for CI/CD capabilities in Data Factory
SPN auth available for pipeline CRUD APIs to secure API apps without needing to use their user token when using the REST API.
Lakehouse connector to read delta tables, being able to use the information from the deletion vectors to exclude deleted records.
Support for column mapping, and automated auto-creation of tables with new schemas.
A really exciting announcement to help migrate from Azure Synapse Analytics was unveiled. This Migration Assistant for Fabric Data Warehouse will soon be in preview! The Migration experience is built natively into Fabric and enables the seamless transition from Azure Synapse Analytics(Data Warehouse) toMicrosoft Fabric.
There is a new version of Copilot for Data Engineering and Data Science, a next-generation AI-powered assistant designed to elevate data analysis and coding experience.
Organizations can use Azure AI Foundry to connect customized, conversational agents, created inhashtagMicrosoft Fabric.
Microsoft Purview
There are several new innovations inhashtagMicrosoft Purviewfor protected, AI-ready data 1. Enhancing Microsoft Purview Data Loss Prevention (DLP) support for lakehouse in Fabric to help prevent sensitive data loss by restricting access 2. Expanding DLP policy support for additional Fabric items such as KQL databases and Mirrored databases to show users notification through policy tips when they are working with sensitive data 3. Microsoft Purview for Copilot in Fabric 4. Data observability, now in preview, within Microsoft Purview Unified Catalog
These are a few of the announcements that were of particular interest to me but there were a lot of announcements showcasing the sheer volume of change and growth of Microsoft Fabric.
