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Apache Flink Alternatives in 2026: When SQL Is Enough

Flink is powerful but demands Java expertise, operational overhead, and a separate serving database. These alternatives handle the common…

Apr 23, 2026 · 12 min read · 5 claps #data-engineering #system-architecture #apache-flink

The modern data stack assumed batch. The real-time data stack assumes streams. Here is how the components fit together in 2026, which tools…

Apr 23, 2026 · 16 min read · 2 claps #data-engineering #data-architecture #data-streaming

Kafka Streams is a Java library for stateful stream processing. RisingWave is a streaming database with a SQL interface. They overlap in…

Apr 22, 2026 · 9 min read · 1 claps #data-engineering #apache-kafka #stream-processing

Traditional feature stores (Feast, Tecton) were designed for batch ML training. AI agents in 2026 need features fresh to the second…

Apr 15, 2026 · 13 min read · 0 claps #machine-learning #data-engineering #data-streaming

Change data capture has split into two categories: pure CDC connectors that ship events to Kafka, and integrated CDC databases that…

Apr 20, 2026 · 12 min read · 0 claps #data-engineering #system-architecture #apache-kafka

Batch-computed recommendations miss the purchase window. In 2026, streaming SQL closes the gap between what a user just did and what they…

Apr 20, 2026 · 12 min read · 0 claps #recommendation-system #sql #large-language-models

Materialize pioneered streaming SQL materialized views. In 2026, open source alternatives have caught up. In several dimensions, they have…

Apr 21, 2026 · 11 min read · 0 claps #data-engineering #stream-processing #data-architecture

ClickHouse is the fastest OLAP database for historical analytics. RisingWave is the leading streaming SQL database for real-time data. They…

Apr 21, 2026 · 9 min read · 0 claps #data-engineering #data-architecture #data-streaming