Welcome to Weaviate 2024: AI Insights, Learning, and Community Highlights

Hello, Weaviate Community! 🤗

Happy New Year, and thank you for staying with us in 2024. We are excited to continue this journey alongside you and ensure that you stay informed and engaged whether you're new to AI or a seasoned Weaviate Community member. Are you ready to jumpstart your year with newest innovations, fresh learning materials, and the latest trends?

Let's dive in and make sure you get everything!

Weaviate 2023 Recap

It's hard to believe that just a year ago, very few people knew about vector databases and how AI could use them. Even those who did had many questions. But with the launch of OpenAI's ChatGPT, curiosity about AI skyrocketed. This curiosity has accelerated our progress and opened our eyes to AI's vast potential, transforming how we communicate, learn, teach, and collaborate. Now, let's share a few community highlights:

1. Introduction to Vector Databases and AI Workshops

2. Weaviate Academy

3. Ton of hackathons

4. Building with Weaviate: In-house and community projects

5. Embracing open source and sharing knowledge

6. Expanding our global community with in-person meetups

7. The upcoming Weaviate Hero Program in 2024!

To learn more, read our Weaviate 2023 Recap.

Newest AI & data technology developments

Podcast Series: AI-Native Databases

Where are new advances in generative AI taking us, and what will the role of database systems be?

Dive into AI-native Databases with our ✨new✨ podcast series hosted by Bob van Luijt and Connor Shorten, featuring insightful discussions with industry experts:

• 🎙️ Self-Driving Databases with Andy Pavlo: AI-Native Databases #1: Featuring Andy Pavlo, this episode explores self-driving databases, optimizing them with AI and ML, and merging data with large language models (LLMs).

• 🎙️ Structure in Data with Paul Groth: AI-Native Databases #2: Dive deep into the role of data structure with Paul Groth. Discover perspectives on Knowledge Graphs, LLMs, and dynamic data structuring.

• 🎙️ Humans and AI with John Maeda: AI-Native Databases #3: Featuring John Maeda, this episode delves into how humans perceive AI, design evolution in tech, and understanding AI's inner workings.

• 🎙️ Subjectivity in AI with Dan Shipper: AI-Native Databases #4: With Dan Shipper as the guest, explore the role of personality and subjectivity in AI. Gain insights into AI technology from the perspective of writers and content creators.

Enjoy, and feel free to reach out with your thoughts and questions!

The first AI events of 2024 are here

We are super excited to announce that our Events & Webinars Page is now live on our website! 🚀

Discover all our upcoming events here:

Online Workshops

• New: Intro to Weaviate for JavaScript

  • Sign up for an introductory Weaviate workshop designed for JavaScript developers hosted by Daniel Phiri!

• Last chance to join today: Intro to Weaviate with Zain #28

  • Secure your spot for this edition of the Introduction to Weaviate Workshop with Zain Hasan! Learn all about Vector Databases and Weaviate.

Webinar

How to Build an AI-Native Foundation for Enterprise Apps

Is your team building an AI application this year?

Weaviate’s Byron Voorbach and Innovative Solutions' Travis Rehl are here to share best practices for creating a fast, secure and scalable foundation for your next AI project. Sign up and you’ll get the chance to ask questions and see a demo of how these concepts work in the real world!

Stay tuned for more events on the Events & Webinars Page and in our Weaviate newsletter.

Remember to check the provided links for event details and registration. We can't wait to connect with you!

Weaviate Hero Program

As we enter the new year of 2024, we're excited to celebrate our amazing Weaviate Community! We’re launching the Weaviate Hero Program to honor those who exemplify our values and actively contribute to the community by sharing their knowledge and expertise.

Do you know someone who has significantly impacted your Weaviate journey? Nominate them as a Weaviate Hero! Let's acknowledge and appreciate the individuals who enrich our community. 💚

As we continue to build, learn, and collaborate, we're excited to see the innovations that 2024 will bring. 💫

Welcoming new faces

• Mohamed Badawi is joining us as a Software Engineer in the Cloud Team

• José Luis Franco Arza is joining us as a QA Engineer in the Cloud Strategy Team

• Mike Hoppe joins us as a Client-Focused SRE in the Cloud Strategy Team

Thank you for reading

Do you have any questions about Weaviate, vector databases, documentation, or other topics? Feel free to explore the Weaviate Forum, where you can engage in community conversations. Looking forward to a new year ahead with you! 🚀

Till the next one,

Femke