Microsoft and Google Back Open Specification for Interoperable Data Platforms

Microsoft and Google have joined forces with Apache Ossie to create an open specification for exchanging semantic models across data, analytics, and AI platforms. This project aims to make enterprise data and AI platforms more interoperable, reducing vendor lock-in and the burden of repeated engineering work for enterprises.

The Ossie project has already gained support from over 60 companies, including Databricks, Informatica, Nvidia, Oracle, Salesforce, and Snowflake. It uses JSON and YAML to represent semantic models, making them interoperable across platforms such as Snowflake, Databricks, Tableau, ThoughtSpot, and Sigma.

Microsoft's support for Ossie includes developing a two-way converter between Power BI semantic models and Ossie, allowing enterprises to move semantic context defined in Power BI to the common format. Google is also joining the project, with plans to contribute to the specification.