The Data Council conference is a practitioner-focused event covering various trends in data and AI, including data governance, RAG, disaggregated storage querying, and shifting ecosystems around popular tooling like Python and R. The conference focuses on community building and problem-solving, with an emphasis on connecting innovative startups with teams that can help them take their projects to market. Vectara hosted a Lightning Track at the event, featuring 14 speakers who presented on topics such as data management, object storage, LLM observability, infrastructure, and Rust. The conference also included workshops, speaker office hours, and panels, providing attendees with opportunities for networking and learning from industry experts. The event featured notable speakers, including DJ Patil, Daniel Olmedilla, and Ram Sriharsha, who discussed topics such as generative AI, fairness in AI models, and the importance of data quality and reliability. Overall, the Data Council conference aims to bring together practitioners and innovators to tackle the biggest problems in data and AI, with a focus on community building and problem-solving.