The Lakehouse Isn't The End Game — Here's What Comes Next
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The data lakehouse has emerged as a powerful and popular data architecture, combining the scale of data lakes with the management features of data warehouses. It promises a unified platform for storing and analyzing structured and unstructured data, particularly for AI and analytics. But for many organizations, the reality falls short.

Despite heavy investment in lakehouses, data teams continue to face frustrating obstacles: business users still can’t find, access, and utilize the data they need without a lot of help; AI initiatives stall due to poor data quality and trustworthiness; and compliance teams wrestle with governance gaps. Why? Because the lakehouse alone doesn’t solve the hardest part of managing data: integrating, governing, and delivering it in a way that all stakeholders—human or AI—can actually use.

That’s where Denodo comes in.

At Denodo, we believe the lakehouse is a good foundation—but it doesn’t provide the full solution. Our logical data management platform augments lakehouse investments by closing four key architectural gaps:

  1. Semantic Unification: Making Data Understandable to All
    Lakehouses centralize data but lack a semantic layer. That means users still struggle to find what they need, or worse, they misinterpret it. The Denodo Platform adds a unified semantic layer across all data—inside and outside the lakehouse—so users and AI models alike can access trustworthy, AI-ready data in business terms they understand. And all without requiring expensive replication to a central location.
  2. Self-Service, Not Self-Sabotage
    Lakehouses are built for scale, not for business user experience. Without intuitive search, contextual metadata, or role-based access, business analysts are stuck waiting on IT. Denodo changes that. Our platform includes a personalized e-commerce-like data marketplace experience, streamlining the development of tailored data products and providing governed data delivery—putting safe, curated data into users’ hands with zero coding and minimal IT help.
  3. Federated Governance with Centralized Control
    Modern enterprises’ data estates span multiple cloud systems and technologies. The lakehouse doesn’t offer centralized control over this sprawl, nor was it intended to. The Denodo Platform enforces data governance policies across all data sources, with fine-grained access controls, privacy compliance, and data usage monitoring built in. The result? Faster GRC approvals, reduced risk, and peace of mind.
  4. Real-Time Data Without Real-Time Costs
    Most operational and AI use cases need real-time data—but lakehouses typically lag behind, relying on periodic batch loads or costly replication. The Denodo Platform queries live data in place, and only when needed. Our smart query optimization and FinOps dashboard enable real-time access without spiraling costs. Our benchmarks show a 10x performance improvement on lakehouse queries, with equivalent costs, when the Denodo Platform is in play.

From Promise to Performance

The Denodo Platform doesn’t replace the lakehouse—it completes it. By adding real-time integration, semantic clarity, governed self-service, and intelligent cost control, the Denodo Platform makes your lakehouse deliver on its promise: faster insights, better AI outcomes, and measurable business value.

Denodo makes your data lakehouse not just a destination for data—but a launchpad for innovation and business results.

(Originally published on InsightJam)

Dominic Sartorio
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