Salesforce Unveils the Next Generation of AI-Driven Analytics for Tableau

Salesforce’s Tableau division is unveiling its vision for the future of data analytics at the Tableau Conference 2024, with AI taking center stage.

Tableau's software empowers data analysts and business users to leverage enterprise data effectively. Over the past year, the company has intensified its focus on AI to enhance data insights and simplify the process for users to derive value from their data.

At the conference, Tableau will introduce new updates and elaborate on previously announced AI features, including Tableau Pulse and Einstein Copilot for Tableau. The rollout also includes Viz Extensions, which provide users with enhanced libraries for creating dynamic data visualizations. Additionally, the Tableau Desktop Public Edition will allow users to seamlessly work with public data on local systems.

Looking ahead, Salesforce outlined its upcoming innovations during a media briefing. Tableau CEO Ryan Aytay described three waves of innovation in the data analytics sector. The first wave required coding for full-service analytics, while the second wave enabled self-service visualization. We are now in the third wave, focusing on making data analytics accessible to all employees.

“The future of Tableau in this third wave is about building on our foundation of deep visualizations and data cataloging,” Aytay explained. “It’s about making data and AI accessible for every user, including those in business roles who rely on data for their tasks.”

AI Enhancing Data Analytics

At the conference, Tableau will introduce new features for Tableau Pulse, which became generally available on February 22, 2023. This AI-driven service leverages natural language queries to assist in creating data visualizations and identifying key metrics, trends, and recommendations. As of now, over 3,000 organizations have deployed Tableau Pulse.

Among the new features is Ask Q&A, designed to help users formulate the right questions about their data. Additionally, the new Metrics Bootstrapping feature supports users in establishing and tracking relevant metrics. The Metrics Goals feature further enables users to compare progress against specific targets.

Simplifying Analytics for Everyone

Southard Jones, Tableau's Chief Product Officer, shared a forward-looking vision that addresses challenges such as fragmented data landscapes and data trust.

“The data we seek insights from includes structured, unstructured, and streaming data,” Jones said. “Envision a future where Tableau integrates all these data types seamlessly.”

Jones introduced the concept of agile semantics, which reconciles exploratory analysis with governance. This capability aims to balance the analytical freedom needed for metric creation with the certified governance required for a unified business language.

The agile semantics feature allows users to clean data, eliminate duplicates, and propose relevant metrics or hierarchies, streamlining the process of creating reliable metrics for diverse data analyses.

Connecting Insights to Action

Tableau also aspires to make data insights actionable. Jones noted a common challenge in data analytics: insights often don’t lead to action.

“Currently, insights are an offline activity; you gather them and then need to communicate what to do next,” he explained. “In the worst-case scenario, insights remain unused.”

To combat this, Tableau plans to embed analytics into the tools that people already use. For instance, if a customer support team excels, a corresponding metric can trigger a workflow tool to facilitate HR's approval for bonuses.

Ultimately, Jones stressed the need for an open data stack rather than a modern one. “The so-called modern data stack requires a rethink; we need a system that is more open and accessible,” he said.