Databricks releases, every cloud
- Data Classification now scans Unity Catalog views (Beta)
Scans Unity Catalog views in addition to tables, using the same detection engine, and is currently in Beta.
- Lakebase snapshots API (Beta)
Manages point-in-time snapshots of project branches, allowing create, get, list, delete, and restore operations.
- The counter_diff SQL window function is now available
Calculates differences between consecutive cumulative counter values, available in Databricks Runtime 19 and above.
- Window measures on a numeric index column in metric views
Supports unitless offset and ranges on consecutive integer columns, useful for non-calendar periods like fiscal weeks.
- External secrets in Unity Catalog (Beta)
Connects Unity Catalog schema to AWS Secrets Manager, appearing as read-only objects.
- Lakebase now supports PCI-DSS and HITRUST in all AWS regions
Requires compliance security profile enabled. Previously limited to us-east-1 region.
- Run the change, do not just read it. Hands-on labs in your own Databricks workspace, graded when you submit. Browse labs
- See which chunks support each ai_search answer (Beta)
Added generate_citations option to show supporting chunks.
- time_bucket SQL function aligns timestamps to fixed-width time buckets
Replaces date_trunc for non-calendar units, requires origin and width parameters.
- Unity Catalog Skills (Beta)
Publishes and governs agent skills, controlling access with Unity Catalog permissions.
- LTAP Direct Writes accelerates synced table loads (Beta)
Requires Postgres 17, enabled from Previews page. Writes directly to storage layer.
- Genie Code is now available in the Lakebase project UI
Lets you run multi-step data and AI tasks with natural language input. Available for all Lakebase projects.
- Postgres minor version updates
Updates to 16.15, 17.11, and 18.6, applied on compute restart.
- Context attributes in ABAC column mask and row filter policies (Beta)
Targets request context, such as OAuth client ID and on-behalf-of status, in Unity Catalog policies.
- Identity attributes in ABAC column mask policies (Beta)
Targets users by attributes like department or country, using has_identity_attribute_value and has_identity_attribute_tag_match functions.
- Tags page in Governance Hub (Beta)
Provides a centralized view of tag usage, summarizes governed tags, and offers recommendations for invalid values. Requires account admins to enable from Previews page.
- Define business concepts with Pages (Beta)
Gives business terms a single governed definition, part of Unity Catalog semantics.
- REPLACE USING flows for standalone streaming tables (Beta)
Replaces rows matching specified key columns, requires SEQUENCE BY column.
- Lakebase now supports PCI-DSS and HITRUST
Requires compliance security profile, limited to us-east-1 on AWS.
- Get this table by email. One Monday mail covering the week, filtered to the clouds and products you run. Weekly digest
- READ METADATA privilege is GA
Provides read-only visibility into security-sensitive metadata, including privilege grants and ABAC policies.
- Change data feed on materialized views (Beta)
Requires Databricks Runtime 18 LTS or above. Enables replication to external destinations.
- Tag automations (Beta)
Assigns or removes governed tags on Unity Catalog tables or volumes based on defined conditions.
- Automatic cost attribution for materialized views and streaming tables in Databricks SQL
Inherits custom tags from enclosing SQL warehouse environment for billing.
- Refresh materialized views and streaming tables without exempting the pipeline owner from ABAC policies
Pipeline owners are now subject to ABAC policies when refreshing views and tables. Policies are evaluated using the pipeline owner's identity.
- Secrets in Unity Catalog is GA
Stores secrets as securable objects with Unity Catalog privileges. Uses catalog.schema.secret namespace.
- Upcoming general availability of Unity Gateway Coming soon
Extends Unity Catalog governance to runtime interactions, controls AI service usage, and monitors traffic. Available by default for workspaces with compliance security profile in mid-September.
AWS, read it on their docsAzure, read it on their docsGCP, read it on their docsSAP(not on this cloud) - Diagnose and fix Lakebase issues with Genie, using telemetry in Unity Catalog (Beta)
Uses Unity Catalog database telemetry and conversation with Genie for troubleshooting.
- Automated setup for S3 external locations
Uses AWS IAM temporary delegation to configure external locations and provision required resources.
- Databricks-hosted sample datasets available in the samples catalog
Available in Unity Catalog-enabled workspaces through OpenSharing as samples.databricks.datasets.
AWS, read it on their docsAzure, read it on their docsGCP, read it on their docsSAP(not on this cloud) - Warehouse-level statement timeouts (Beta)
Set via statement_timeout field in Create or Update warehouse APIs.
AWS, read it on their docsAzure, read it on their docsGCP, read it on their docsSAP(not on this cloud) - Lakebase now provides a service level agreement (SLA)
Commits to monthly uptime percentage for zone-redundant and single-compute endpoints.
- Lakebase is now SOC 2 Type 2 compliant
SOC 2 Type 2 compliance covers security and availability controls. Reports are available through account teams.
- Lakebase update notifications now post 3 days in advance
Replaces 7-day notice, check project settings for upcoming updates.
AWS, read it on their docsAzure, read it on their docsGCP, read it on their docsSAP(not on this cloud) - Lakebase now available in AWS Tokyo region (ap-northeast-1)
Available in ap-northeast-1, supports Postgres database.
- Lakehouse Real-Time (Beta)
Delivers sub-second SQL read queries against Unity Catalog tables. Built for low-latency workloads.
AWS, read it on their docsAzure, read it on their docsGCP, read it on their docsSAP(not on this cloud) - Databricks SQL version 2026.20 is now available in Preview
Adds IP address functions, NEAREST BY join type, and QUALIFY clause, with fixes for MERGE WITH SCHEMA EVOLUTION.
AWS, read it on their docsAzure, read it on their docsGCP, read it on their docsSAP(not on this cloud) - Govern LLMs in Unity Catalog with model services (Beta)
Represents a governed LLM endpoint, sharable across workspaces via Unity Catalog privileges.
AWS, read it on their docsAzure, read it on their docsGCP, read it on their docsSAP(not on this cloud) - Lakebase now supports Postgres 18
Postgres 17 remains the default, select Postgres 18 when creating a project.
- Comments on foreign tables (Beta)
Syncs table and column comments from external data sources to Unity Catalog foreign tables.
AWS, read it on their docsAzure, read it on their docsGCP, read it on their docsSAP(not on this cloud) - Lakebase Search adds vector, keyword, and hybrid search to Postgres (Beta)
Adds vector and keyword search to Postgres with lakebase_vector and lakebase_text extensions, replacing separate search stacks.
- ABAC GRANT policies for models (Beta)
Grants EXECUTE privilege on models based on governed tags, supporting MLflow and foundation models.
AWS, read it on their docsAzure, read it on their docsGCP, read it on their docsSAP(not on this cloud)
Headlines, dates and product areas are Databricks' own, and every item links to the note it came from. The one-line summaries are ours.