For analysts and frontline workers alike

In the world of business intelligence (BI), the quest for balance is akin to an engineer tuning a high-performance car. If you skew too far towards optimizing performance, you may end up with an unwieldy interface that only professional race car drivers can operate. To make it accessible to casual drivers too, you need to balance robustness with versatility.

Business intelligence tools require the same approach. On one hand, you want to hand your data experts a high-performance tool for a deep dive into data. After all, strategic decisions need to be based on data with no margin for error.

On the other hand, in an era where agile decision-making is crucial, you must consider your entire organization. By empowering every employee, from CXOs to frontline workers, with data-driven insights, you enable the entire organization to thrive even in the most competitive environments.

Overemphasis on power

Developing robust enterprise analytics software often involves a focus on providing the most sophisticated tools for data analysts. While essential for deep insights, this approach can inadvertently sideline other groups of users. Non-technical executives and other staff may find themselves excluded from the decision-making process, leading to a disconnect between data insights and actionable business strategies.

Even the most robust engine won’t drive itself. An agile company in a competitive field needs all its parts to work in unison. You need power, but you also need to make it accessible, all while maintaining absolute safety.

From analyst focus to universal empowerment

MicroStrategy has always had a strong focus on the data analyst. “Frankly, our extreme focus on the developer in the past was a bit unbalanced. This year, we made a concerted effort to broaden and balance our focus, and we are thrilled to see the results,” said Saurabh Abhyankar, Executive Vice President & Chief Product Officer at MicroStrategy.

At MicroStrategy, our mission is to bring “Intelligence Everywhere,” which includes support for everyone across the organization, including frontline workers—not just the data elite. We have invested heavily in both AI-powered capabilities and HyperIntelligence over the past year.

Thanks to our independence, we are in a unique position to take a long-term view. A few years ago, we shifted our focus and completely refactored the entire platform for the cloud. The culmination of this effort—MicroStrategy ONE—brings our deep heritage in enterprise-grade analytics onto a new modern cloud-native architecture.

Embracing cloud-native architecture

Imagine the cloud-native approach as upgrading your vehicle from a traditional gasoline engine to a hybrid engine. The hybrid engine offers the robustness and reliability of gasoline with the added benefits of electric power—greater efficiency and adaptability. When driving a hybrid, you can charge or refuel your car, whichever best fits your purpose.

Similarly, transitioning to a cloud-native architecture allowed MicroStrategy to combine our deep analytics capabilities with the flexibility and scalability of the cloud. This shift ensured that our platform is now entirely cloud-agnostic and can be deployed wherever you need it, on AWS, Azure, or Google Cloud. If you decide to build your own data infrastructure, you can also use MicroStrategy ONE on-premises.

This way, our MicroStrategy ONE platform can meet the diverse needs of an entire organization, from data analysts to frontline workers.

Generative AI for universal access

The shift to embrace all the agility and versatility of a cloud environment positioned us perfectly for the advent of generative AI.

In September 2023, as the first company in the BI ecosystem, we launched generative AI-powered BI services: Auto SQL, Auto Dashboard, and Auto Answers. These tools, available within the MicroStrategy ONE platform, enable users to interact with data through natural language queries in real-time. They allow non-technical users to engage with data sources through plain text and powerful data visualizations.

Embracing the power of Large Language Models allowed us to leapfrog many other platforms in augmented analytics. This approach makes proper data analysis accessible to everyone, regardless of their technical expertise.

Luck favors the prepared

In December 2023, we introduced a stand-alone AI bot that could be embedded into applications, accessed via mobile, or even via an API. This bot acts like a personal data assistant, ready to provide insights on demand. It is one of the most versatile data analytical products or services available.

Auto Bots are incredibly simple to create and deploy. You can place these data analytical tools wherever you need them. They can be embedded in your company portal, on mobile devices at your point of sale, or directly within Teams. Each bot is also highly customizable, enabling swift adaptation to meet the specific requirements of your business.

This ensures that non-data experts can leverage powerful AI technology seamlessly, enabling every employee to interact with deep data using natural language.

The Semantic Graph: the heart of intelligence

At the core of MicroStrategy’s platform is our Semantic Graph, the powerhouse engine that organizes data across the organization. Think of the metadata layer as the central nervous system of a car, where all the data flows and is processed to ensure everything runs smoothly.

The semantic layer ensures that every stakeholder, from the data analyst to the frontline worker, uses the same source of truth. This unified data approach eliminates silos, promotes consistency, and drives informed decision-making at all levels of the organization.

Balance Through Innovation

Analyzing data has never been simpler. MicroStrategy’s journey from a developer-centric approach to an inclusive, cloud-native, AI-powered platform shows how you can strike a balance between power and accessibility. By re-engineering our platform and embracing generative AI, we have managed to bring intelligence everywhere—empowering all users with the insights they need to drive data-driven decisions.

Just like a well-tuned engine that delivers both robustness and efficiency, MicroStrategy ONE, with its Semantic Graph and AI capabilities, ensures that every user can navigate the data landscape with confidence and ease. This balanced approach not only meets the needs of today’s data analysts but also democratizes data access across the entire organization, making powerful BI tools available to all.