Data: The First 50 Years

1 min read Original article ↗

Three horizontal layers, each totaling 100 percent. Access is at the top, compute in the middle, and storage at the bottom. Curved bands connect access to compute and compute to storage, covering the full edges of the boxes. Vendor APIs stay separate by engine. Access routes after 1991 are illustrative estimates. Select a box to inspect its percentage and emphasize its connections. Within a layer, use the left and right arrow keys to move between boxes.

Access & storage System-specific Portable / shared

Vendor-managed open formats / APIs

Compute uses a uniform fill.

Widths show shares of analytical activity. Select a box to trace its connections. All figures are estimates. Read the blog post.

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All percentages for 2026