Steve Jones, Kellyn Gorman and Grant Fritchey discuss what surprised them most in the database/tech world in 2025, ruminate on the good, bad and ugly of AI, and ponder where it goes next. Recorded on-site at PASS Summit 2025 in Seattle.

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Ed Pollack (Microsoft Data Platform MVP and community champion) sat down with Steve Jones at PASS Summit 2025 to discuss many topics including:

• Why change is good - but keeping on top of the fundamentals is still important
• Data modeling
• Recommended software/products to use
• SQL Server 2025, which was just launched into General Availability at the time of recording
• The process of testing & best practices
• The importance of community, and how to bring people together
• Running a marathon

Plus, find out what Ed's baking specialism is – and try it for yourself at the Capital Area SQL Server User Group event in Albany, NY!

Event information: https://www.meetup.com/capital-area-sql-server-user-group/

Ed's Simple Talk profile: https://www.red-gate.com/simple-talk/author/ed7alum-rpi-edu/

Ed's MVP profile: https://mvp.microsoft.com/en-US/mvp/profile/c7dc42d5-ff3e-ed11-bba3-000d3a197333

Ed on Sessionize: https://sessionize.com/edward-pollack/

Steve Jones is joined by SQLBits founder Simon Sabin at Redgate's Cambridge HQ to discuss Simon's early days in the data world (and how the industry has evolved), the importance of context when working with AI, and what's ahead for SQLBits in 2026. They also dive into the nuances of conference speaking and, for a change of pace, Simon talks about his foray into UK motor racing.

SQLBits 2026 takes place 22-25 April 2026 at the ICC Wales: https://sqlbits.com/

Sabin.io: https://sabin.io/

Steve chats with John Sterrett, CEO of ProcureSQL, about his true love for data from a young age, how SQL Saturday and community events inspired him to start his own company, ProcureSQL's use of AI to provide more value, and the impacts of work on relationships - plus much more!

ProcureSQL: https://procuresql.com/

John's website: https://johnsterrett.com/

Marriage Masterpeace: https://marriagemasterpeace.com/

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Steve sits down with Lee Brownhill, who by day helps clients optimize their SQL workloads in Azure and AWS at Cloud Rede, but is also a Redgate Ambassador, blogger and aspiring speaker. Lee talks about his interest in giving back to the SQL Server community through writing and speaking, having taken inspiration from others online and in-person at events, and naturally the conversation also touches upon AI, the cloud, and more.

Lee's website: https://www.leebrownhill.com/

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Join Redgate Advocates Steve, Kellyn & Grant as they seek to answer the question: who owns the database? Hear everything from stories of being on-call 24/7 as a DBA and why it's not sustainable, to how the cloud is changing things today.

Ultimately, the answer looks different everywhere. Tell us how it plays out in your world by joining the 2026 State of the Database Landscape Survey and be in with a chance to win new SQL Prompt with AI features: https://rd.gt/4pBCh9d

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Steve Jones is at Redgate's Cambridge, UK headquarters once again, this time joined by Tom Hodgson, Innovation Lead on Redgate's Foundry team. Tom gives an overview of The Foundry, which is Redgate's innovation hub, offering some insight on what they do and what they're working on (spoiler: it involves AI)! Also, hear Tom's thoughts on AI & LLMs in general – including why sometimes just the basic version of a model is enough.

Redgate Foundry: https://foundry.red-gate.com/

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Steve Jones sits down for a chat with Jeff Foster, Redgate's Director of Technology & Innovation, at the company's Cambridge, UK headquarters. The main subject covered is hugely topical – AI – with Jeff explaining how he feels about AI today and how it might impact us, and our jobs, in the future. You'll also learn a bit more about Jeff's background and Redgate's ways of working.

Jeff's recommended read is 'The Unaccountability Machine' by Dan Davies.

Check out more Simple Talk podcast episodes at https://rd.gt/3TJocZ9