Kaspian

Overview of Kaspian

Kaspian is a cloud-based platform designed to streamline the development and deployment of data workflows, particularly those involving big data and deep learning technologies. It offers a comprehensive suite of tools that enable data teams to efficiently manage compute infrastructure, build data pipelines, and train AI models at scale. Kaspian’s architecture is built to run securely within your own Virtual Private Cloud (VPC), ensuring that all data processing and storage remain within your cloud environment.

Key Features of Kaspian

• Compute Runtimes: Kaspian provides granular control over compute resources, allowing users to define clusters and environments tailored to their specific workload requirements. This includes support for distributed jobs using engines like Apache Spark and multi-GPU deep learning training jobs.
• Data Pipelining Studio: The platform offers a low-code visual workflow builder that enables users to design and orchestrate complex data pipelines without extensive coding knowledge. This simplifies the process of integrating various data sources and processing steps.
• AI Model Training & Hosting: Kaspian facilitates the training and hosting of AI models, including large language models (LLMs). Users can configure clusters to run distributed jobs or utilize multiple GPUs to accelerate training. Once trained, models can be easily hosted and accessed via APIs.
• Notebooks & Dashboards: The platform includes hosted JupyterHub instances for prototyping data workflows and developing AI models. Additionally, it offers built-in dashboards for monitoring and visualizing data, providing insights into workflow performance and system metrics.
• Hosted Services: Kaspian integrates industry-standard data and compute tools, such as JupyterHub, Grafana, and Apache Superset, within the customer’s own cloud environment. This integration ensures a seamless experience for users working with these tools.

How to Use Kaspian

Getting started with Kaspian involves the following steps:

1. Sign Up: Create an account on the Kaspian platform. A credit card is not required for the Free Forever tier.
2. Set Up Your Cloud Environment: Configure your cloud environment to run Kaspian securely within your VPC. This ensures that all data processing and storage remain within your cloud infrastructure.
3. Create Clusters and Environments: Define clusters to specify the hardware configuration for your workloads. Then, create environments to define the software dependencies and configurations needed for your applications.
4. Build Data Pipelines: Use the visual workflow builder to design and orchestrate data pipelines that integrate various data sources and processing steps.
5. Train and Host AI Models: Configure clusters to train AI models and utilize GPUs for accelerated training. Once trained, deploy models and expose them via APIs for inference.
6. Monitor and Visualize: Utilize the built-in dashboards to monitor workflow performance and system metrics, ensuring efficient operation.

Pricing

Kaspian offers a transparent and flexible pricing model tailored to meet the diverse needs of data teams:

• Free Forever Tier: This tier provides users with up to 100 compute job executions per month, allowing them to explore and utilize Kaspian’s features without any cost. No credit card is required to access this tier.
• Enterprise Tier: Designed for organizations with more extensive requirements, the Enterprise tier offers unlimited seats and executions. It also includes the ability to run Kaspian securely within your own VPC. Nonprofit and educational institutions can access the Enterprise tier for free by contacting Kaspian directly.
• Usage-Based Pricing: For users exceeding the Free Forever tier’s limits, Kaspian offers usage-based pricing. The platform guarantees to beat any competitor’s quote by at least 25%, and some clients have reported reducing their data cloud total cost of ownership (TCO) by over 60% when switching to Kaspian.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

• What makes Kaspian’s data platform unique? Kaspian offers a comprehensive toolkit for teams looking to leverage the modern data cloud. Its low-code pipelining studio, granular control planes, hosted integrations, and diverse compute runtime support set it apart from other platforms.
• Where does Kaspian store and process my data? Kaspian runs securely within your own VPC, ensuring that all data is stored and processed entirely within your cloud account. The platform is GDPR-compliant and is working towards SOC-2 Type II certification.
• Can I use Kaspian for free? Yes, Kaspian offers a Free Forever tier that customers can utilize without any cost. Additionally, nonprofit and educational institutions can access the Enterprise tier for free by contacting Kaspian directly.
• How does Kaspian compare to other data platforms? Kaspian is designed to be more performant and capable compared to vendors like Dataiku, Informatica, and Alteryx. The platform’s usage-based pricing model and comprehensive feature set make it a cost-effective and powerful alternative.