Keboola
Keboola is clearing legacy plumbing so its AI agent has a clean platform to run on.
Comparison · Analytics
dbt Core vs Omni
A side-by-side editorial comparison of dbt Core and Omni — release velocity, themes, recent moves, and the top alternatives to consider.
dbt Core vs Omni: at a glance
What is dbt Core?
dbt 2.0 ships — proprietary binary forks from dbt-oss as AI agent skills land
dbt just shipped its 2.0.0 GA release, formally splitting the codebase into a proprietary 'dbt' binary (the Fusion engine) and 'dbt-oss'. The 2.0 release adds AI agent skill installs from packages, native Databricks metric view materializations, and a new ClickHouse ADBC driver. Post-2.0 dev builds (dev.41) are already extending Lake Compute with Databricks Unity Catalog read access.
What is Omni?
Omni keeps widening who and what can operate its BI layer: agents, external users, routines.
Omni ships a weekly bundle that pushes on two fronts: warehouse integration depth (dbt on Trino, Databricks query tagging) and AI-native interfaces (MCP tools for app management, dashboard PNG exports to MCP clients, user memory in AI chat). The latest week adds external users, conditional routines and web search for Omni Agent. Apps reached general availability at the end of August.
dbt Core vs Omni: editorial side-by-side
dbt Core
7.5ANALYTICS
dbt 2.0 ships — proprietary binary forks from dbt-oss as AI agent skills land
◆ Current state
dbt just shipped its 2.0.0 GA release, formally splitting the codebase into a proprietary 'dbt' binary (the Fusion engine) and 'dbt-oss'. The 2.0 release adds AI agent skill installs from packages, native Databricks metric view materializations, and a new ClickHouse ADBC driver. Post-2.0 dev builds (dev.41) are already extending Lake Compute with Databricks Unity Catalog read access.
◆ Where it's heading
The proprietary/OSS fork is the defining structural move: dbt (proprietary) will accumulate AI-adjacent features — agent skills, Lake Compute, Databricks-specific materializations — while dbt-oss serves the backward-compat install base. The agent skills system (SKILL.md packages) is early but establishes a plugin surface for AI workflow definitions inside dbt runs. Expect the Databricks surface to keep widening as Lake Compute moves toward write support.
◆ Prediction
Next likely move: agent skills expand from installation-only to execution, and Lake Compute adds write paths or more Unity Catalog capabilities. The ClickHouse ADBC driver work may also get a GA tag soon given the volume of RC iterations.
Omni
7.5ANALYTICS
Omni keeps widening who and what can operate its BI layer: agents, external users, routines.
◆ Current state
Omni ships a weekly bundle that pushes on two fronts: warehouse integration depth (dbt on Trino, Databricks query tagging) and AI-native interfaces (MCP tools for app management, dashboard PNG exports to MCP clients, user memory in AI chat). The latest week adds external users, conditional routines and web search for Omni Agent. Apps reached general availability at the end of August.
◆ Where it's heading
Omni increasingly treats AI agents and automated routines as first-class operators of the analytics layer, not just end users asking questions. External users and embedded routines extend that reach outside the customer's own org, pointing toward Omni as a platform other products build on.
◆ Prediction
Expect more MCP tools and routine triggers that let agents act on workspaces, alongside further governance controls for external and embedded users.
Alternatives to dbt Core and Omni
Other Analytics products tracked by Sparkpulse, ranked by recent ship velocity. Each card links to a full editorial trajectory and lets you pivot into a head-to-head comparison with either dbt Core or Omni.
Holistics
Holistics is turning its BI layer into a place where AI runs on a schedule.
Tinybird
Tinybird keeps shipping weekly, now tightening the knobs on deduplication and indexing.
OpenCTI
OpenCTI ships near-daily, steering security coverage and AI work through XTM One.
Fulcrum
After the MCP launch, Fulcrum is in a maintenance stretch while Photo FastFill grinds through alpha.
OpenHouse
OpenHouse adds a views API while it hardens control-plane safety for automated maintenance.
See all dbt Core alternatives → · See all Omni alternatives →
Recent activity from dbt Core and Omni
Latest ship moves from both products, interleaved chronologically. ⚡ = editorial spark.
- 4d agoOmniExternal users, conditional routines and Omni Agent web search
- 12d agodbt CoreLake Compute gains Databricks Unity Catalog read access
- 12d agoOmnidbt on Trino, embedded routines and MCP app-management tools ⚡
- 19d agodbt Coredbt v2.0.0 ⚡
- 20d agodbt Coredbt v1.12.5
- 20d agodbt CoreInternal test-PyPI build (2.0.2)
- 21d agoOmniComposite topics API, Skills API endpoints and sidebar undo/redo
- 24d agodbt Corev2.0.0-rc.2
- 25d agoOmniApps hit GA; MCP clients can export dashboard PNGs ⚡
- 26d agodbt CoreClickHouse ADBC driver dev build (2.0.0-dev.39)
- 1mo agoOmniOmni Agent edits dashboards; AI chat gains user memory
- 1mo agoOmniEmbedded apps preview, Databricks query tagging, forecasting controls
Frequently asked questions
What is the difference between dbt Core and Omni?
They serve adjacent needs but don't currently overlap on shipped themes. dbt Core and Omni are shipping at a similar cadence (velocity 7.5 vs 7.5, both within Sparkpulse's "active" band). See the at-a-glance table above for a side-by-side breakdown of velocity, recent sparks, and editorial themes.
Is dbt Core better than Omni?
Sparkpulse doesn't pick a winner — we score release velocity, not feature parity. dbt Core and Omni are shipping at a similar cadence (velocity 7.5 vs 7.5, both within Sparkpulse's "active" band). For your specific use case, the alternatives sections above list other Analytics products to evaluate alongside.
What are the best alternatives to dbt Core?
Top dbt Core alternatives in Analytics are ranked by recent ship velocity. Browse the "dbt Core alternatives" section above for the current picks, or visit /alternatives/dbt-core for the full list with editorial commentary on each.
What are the best alternatives to Omni?
Top Omni alternatives in Analytics are ranked by recent ship velocity. Browse the "Omni alternatives" section above for the current picks, or visit /alternatives/omni for the full list with editorial commentary on each.