DuckDB, the in-process OLAP database, has recently achieved a major milestone with the release of version 1.0. This new iteration brings a host of improvements aimed at enhancing stability and ensuring backward compatibility.
Since its 0.5.0 release in September 2022, DuckDB has garnered significant attention, boasting over a million downloads per month. Co-developer and founder of DuckDB Labs, Hannes Mühleisen, highlighted that the focus of the 1.0 release was primarily on stability rather than introducing new features.
One of the key enhancements in the latest release is the introduction of a new storage format. Mühleisen emphasized the importance of this update, stating that it ensures backward compatibility and limited forward compatibility with the storage format, allowing users to access their data even a decade later.
Furthermore, the new file format allows users to create multiple tables within a single file and supports transactional updates, offering efficiency and compression benefits.
Originating from Amsterdam’s Centrum Wiskunde & Informatica research center, DuckDB is designed to be embedded within a host process, eliminating the need for separate DBMS server software installation or maintenance. The database, written in C++ and available under the MIT License, can seamlessly run queries on data in Python libraries like Pandas without the need for data import or duplication.
Former Google BigQuery engineer Jordan Tigani praised DuckDB for its departure from the cloud-based data warehousing trend, instead leveraging the processing power of local machines. Tigani went on to co-found MotherDuck, a company offering backend extensions for DuckDB.
On the other hand, Hyoun Park, CEO of Amalgam Insights, highlighted DuckDB’s strength in high-performance analytics and file transformations with minimal resource requirements. Park noted that the database’s ability to transform unstructured data into a performant in-memory database is particularly valuable, especially in edge or remote environments.
Mühleisen also mentioned the growing adoption of DuckDB by third-party technology firms under the MIT license, as well as its increasing utilization in various specialized use cases.
