Continuous queries in InfluxDB are pre-computed and stored aggregate query results that can significantly speed up summary queries without overloading the database. They are conceptually similar to materialized views, where expensive query results are pre-computed and stored instead of being computed on-the-fly. Continuous queries can be used to downsample data, transform and isolate data from one series into another, and "rollup" time-series data by time period. They can improve the end user experience for users in dashboard applications, enhance data analysis, and provide a more efficient way to access high-resolution data. To create continuous queries, developers need to run the `CREATE CONTINUOUS QUERY` statement against the query endpoint of the server using tools like curl. Once created, continuous queries are persisted as part of the metadata for the cluster and run periodically as data is collected.