SAP Business Data Cloud - An assessment

On February 13, 2025, SAP unveiled the Business Data Cloud, a powerful, unified data management solution. This platform promises seamless integration and optimization for the use of company data through artificial intelligence (AI). But what does this introduction mean in concrete terms for companies that are in the midst of transformation projects or are driving them forward under considerable time pressure?

Although there has not yet been an opportunity to experience the Business Data Cloud in practice, it is already possible to make a preliminary assessment based on the information available.

Key features of the Business Data Cloud

1. data provision and processing

Data is organized in a so-called Business Data Fabric, which comprises the following elements

• Datasphere

• Business Warehouse (either version 7.5 or already BW/4)

• SAP Databricks (as a new type of building block)

• SAP Analytics Cloud

These elements are designed to work together seamlessly, largely avoiding data replication.

2. insight apps

The Business Data Cloud enables the installation of Insight Apps provided by SAP or partners. These applications make end-to-end semantically rich data available in the warehouse and support direct analysis. As these are SAP-managed, copies must be created in other Spaces for customer-specific adaptations.

3 AI integration

The Joule Agent Builder is an interesting innovation that underlines the importance of rich semantics for the interpretability of data models within AI applications (using the SAP Knowledge Graph).

Technical classification

After some thought and research, the following technical aspects of the Business Data Cloud became clear:

• Integration of Datasphere and SAP Analytics Cloud (SAC): The solution combines these two functions, which makes sense for target architectures aimed at planning scenarios such as "Seamless Planning".

• BW 7.5 integration: The familiar "BW Bridge" for using BW data within the Datasphere is expected to be used here.

• BW/4HANA: Model transfer will be important for this integration and is already part of the Datasphere.

• Insight Apps: These are reminiscent of SAP or partner content within the Business Warehouse and provide complete Datasphere data models through to SAC reporting. Customer-specific adaptations require their own Space installations, which are independent of updates.

• AI functionalities: Joule Agent Builder and SAP Knowledge Graph are in the context of the use of SAP's own AI framework and its integration within the warehouse solutions.

• Cooperation with Databricks: Through this partnership, the Business Data Cloud offers the option of using a Databricks instance on your own SAP tenant. This enables access to first-class machine learning capabilities and 3rd party connections without having to manage a complex multi-cloud connection. Data is exchanged via the delta sharing protocol, which gives SAP further scope for future collaborations

Source: SAP 2025, L2 presentation: SAP Business Data Cloud

Conclusion

To summarize, the SAP Business Data Cloud includes the following technical innovations:

• The integration of Delta Share and access to the Databricks component.

• The functionality of Insight Apps for fast data integration from operational SAP systems and potentially from other standardized data sources.

The ability to package different warehouse solutions together is interesting both for current users of a business warehouse who want to gradually switch to Datasphere and for users of operational SAP systems who want to merge different data sources for joint use in a warehouse - whether as a new warehouse or as an SAP alternative to existing non-SAP solutions.

It remains exciting to see how the Business Data Cloud will develop and what opportunities it will open up for companies. Stay up to date with us on the latest news about this exciting product.