Confluent, the data streaming giant, announced several new capabilities for its Apache Flink offering. These capabilities aim to simplify AI integration and bring stream processing to workloads everywhere. The key updates include AI Model Inference, the Confluent Platform for Apache Flink, and cost-saving Freight clusters.

AI Model Inference, an upcoming feature on Confluent Cloud for Apache Flink, enables teams to easily incorporate machine learning into data pipelines using simple SQL statements. This removes the complexity involved in using streaming data for AI development, allowing organisations to innovate faster and deliver powerful customer experiences.

Confluent also introduced Confluent Platform for Apache Flink, a fully-supported Flink distribution that enables stream processing in on-premises or hybrid environments. This offering provides organisations with expert guidance from Confluent’s foremost experts in the data streaming industry, ensuring secure and up-to-date stream processing applications.

Additionally, Confluent unveiled Freight clusters, a new serverless cluster type that offers up to 90% lower cost for high-throughput use cases with relaxed latency requirements, such as logging or telemetry data. Powered by Elastic CKUs, Freight clusters seamlessly auto-scale based on demand, minimising operational overhead and optimising costs.

“Apache Kafka and Flink are the critical links to fuel machine learning and artificial intelligence applications with the most timely and accurate data,” said Shaun Clowes, Confluent’s Chief Product Officer. Confluent’s AI Model Inference removes the complexity involved when using streaming data for AI development by enabling organisations to innovate faster and deliver powerful customer experiences.”

These new capabilities are designed to help organisations leverage fresh, contextual data for accurate, real-time AI-driven decision-making while enhancing performance and value. Support for AI Model Inference and Freight clusters is available early to select customers, while Confluent Platform for Apache Flink will be available later this year.