As knowledge and AI workloads scale, organizations want a platform that does extra than simply join companies—it should unify them. Azure Databricks brings collectively the complete energy of the Databricks Knowledge Intelligence Platform with deep Azure integrations to simplify and speed up each step of the information lifecycle. From centralized governance and open knowledge codecs to built-in warehousing and native AI instruments, Azure Databricks allows groups to maneuver quicker, cut back complexity, and innovate responsibly. Trusted by hundreds of shoppers, together with main enterprises reminiscent of AT&T, Swiss Re, JLL, CVS Well being, HSBC, Shell, and Walgreens, Azure Databricks is a confirmed platform at scale.
Here is a better take a look at 5 key the explanation why knowledge and AI groups are selecting Azure Databricks as their unified platform for analytics and AI at scale.
1. Unified governance for knowledge + AI
Azure Databricks contains Unity Catalog, the unified governance resolution that enables organizations to make use of one strategy to handle all their knowledge and AI belongings. Whether or not it’s tables, recordsdata, notebooks, fashions, or dashboards, Unity Catalog allows groups to set entry insurance policies as soon as and apply them persistently throughout all workloads.
Unity Catalog’s Lakehouse Federation helps you to mount present knowledge with zero copy from programs reminiscent of SQL Server, BigQuery, Snowflake and storage reminiscent of ADLS or S3. You can too hook up with present Iceberg or Hive Catalogs.
As a part of the Databricks Knowledge Intelligence Platform on Azure, Unity Catalog helps guarantee enterprise-grade safety and lineage monitoring, and interoperability with Microsoft Purview, eliminating the necessity for a number of disconnected governance instruments. Unity Catalog helps guarantee discoverability, enterprise-grade safety and lineage monitoring in your Azure Databricks belongings, with the power to increase this to your total knowledge property by combining with Microsoft Purview.
“Unity Catalog has been a game-changer for our enterprise as a result of now we’re in a position to present fine-grained management and entry to our knowledge.”
2. Deep integrations throughout the Azure ecosystem
Azure Databricks is totally built-in throughout the Azure ecosystem, providing first-party, native connectors and streamlined experiences throughout:
- Energy BI – publish straight from Unity Catalog and Databricks Workflows with full semantic mannequin help
- Azure OpenAI Service – mix massive language fashions with enterprise knowledge securely and responsibly. Along with Azure OpenAI, Azure Databricks provides you mannequin alternative together with unique entry to Anthropic Claude fashions hosted on Azure Databricks and open-source fashions like Meta’s Llama 4
- Azure Knowledge Lake Storage, Azure Knowledge Manufacturing unit, Entra ID, and Microsoft Purview – unify storage, identification, pipeline orchestration, and compliance in a single stack. New in Azure Knowledge Manufacturing unit, the native Databricks Job exercise makes it simpler than ever to set off Databricks Workflows natively.
- Azure AI Foundry – run Azure Databricks Jobs and combine Azure Databricks AI/BI Genie with Foundry Brokers to ship contextual, enterprise-aware solutions
- Microsoft Energy Platform – seamlessly energy your apps, automations, and agent workflows with ruled knowledge, all with out duplicating it
With a few clicks from the Azure Portal, you will have a completely built-in surroundings, with your entire customers and teams from Entra ID accessible to construct knowledge and AI programs.
The prebuilt integrations cut back architectural overhead and speed up time to perception, serving to clients take full benefit of the Azure-native Databricks expertise.
“Azure Databricks works throughout the ecosystem. We have got an information platform right here that is very wealthy, that makes use of so many alternative elements of the Microsoft stack. Databricks is open and orchestrates properly throughout the completely different platforms.”
3. Constructed-in knowledge warehousing with efficiency and suppleness
With the Databricks SQL knowledge warehouse, clients can serve trendy SQL analytics and BI use instances straight inside Azure Databricks, with out requiring a separate warehouse or creating copies of information. Knowledge stays in an open format, not locked right into a proprietary system, enabling enterprise analysts and knowledge engineers to collaborate on a single platform that helps:
- Excessive-concurrency, low-latency dashboards and advert hoc queries utilizing customary SQL
- Direct Energy BI integration with full governance by way of Unity Catalog
- Pure language querying via AI/BI Genie, making insights accessible to extra customers
“With Azure Databricks serving because the Knowledge Intelligence Platform complemented with Microsoft’s Energy BI, the enterprise end result has been profound. Our use instances, like annuities digital menace, has had a multi-million greenback influence on winbacks.”
This stage of efficiency and ease displays the ability of Azure Databricks, enabling groups to unify their analytics layer with out compromising governance or scale.
4. AI improvement made easy
Whether or not you are constructing LLM-powered copilots, fine-tuning proprietary fashions, or operating basic machine studying workloads, Azure Databricks provides the pliability to do all of it whereas holding governance and observability on the forefront.
By integrations with Azure OpenAI, open supply fashions like Llama 4, and help for suppliers like Anthropic, clients can:
- Select the best mannequin for the best use case
- Customise along with your enterprise knowledge and serve fashions securely inside ruled environments
- Monitor value and efficiency via built-in observability instruments
The unified structure of the Databricks Knowledge Intelligence Platform on Azure makes all of this potential, simplifying AI improvement and aligning with enterprise safety necessities.
5. Excessive efficiency with low TCO
Azure Databricks is optimized for each efficiency and effectivity. With the Photon engine, workloads run quicker whereas consuming fewer sources, leading to actual, measurable financial savings for knowledge and AI groups. Key advantages embrace:
- 6x quicker efficiency than legacy warehouse engines
- Consumption-based pricing – pay just for what you employ
- AI-powered auto-optimization, lowering the necessity for handbook tuning
“As a part of our adoption of the Databricks Knowledge Intelligence Platform, we’ve got noticed an amazing quantity of information high quality enchancment, quicker insights by not less than 25%.”
These capabilities replicate the design rules of the Databricks Knowledge Intelligence Platform on Azure: open, clever, and cost-efficient.
Speed up innovation with Azure Databricks
From analytics to GenAI, Azure Databricks gives a unified basis for innovation. As a part of your Microsoft Azure surroundings, Azure Databricks lets you construct smarter, transfer quicker, and govern every little thing in a single place, whether or not you’re scaling BI, accelerating AI, or simplifying your knowledge property. Hear extra how main enterprises are unlocking quicker insights, higher knowledge high quality, and tangible value financial savings utilizing Azure Databricks.
Get Began with a Free 14-day Trial of Azure Databricks.