Apache Polaris™ Shines Bright, Graduating to a Top-Level Project

Snowflake is thrilled to share in a major milestone for the data lakehouse ecosystem: Apache Polaris™ has successfully graduated from the Apache Incubator to become a Top-Level Project (TLP). This indicates that Polaris is now a fully independent project and has adopted the Apache Software Foundation’s (ASF) governance and operation guidelines. Graduation is a significant moment for the project, the ASF and the entire open data lakehouse community. 

For Snowflake, this is a particularly proud moment. We initiated Polaris with a vision to unlock true interoperability for all users of Apache Iceberg™. Collaborating with the community to grow and evolve Polaris from an internal initiative into a vibrant, independent TLP has been incredibly rewarding, and it reflects our deep commitment to community-driven open source solutions. 

An open source north star

Polaris is more than just a piece of software; it is representative of a fundamental shift in our philosophy. 

It’s no secret that Snowflake has been seen as the quintessential "walled garden." We built our reputation on a highly optimized, proprietary stack because we believed this was the best way to deliver performance and ease of use for our customers. 

But Iceberg changed the landscape. It provided a means both for our customers to keep data in storage they manage and for us to do what we do best — offer a platform that delivers performance with a lower operational burden directly on top of our customers’ data lakes.  

We’ve moved from prioritizing the "garden wall" to prioritizing the "open gate," and our commitment to both Polaris and the ASF is the clearest evidence of that evolution.

When Snowflake first open sourced Polaris in mid-2024, our goal was clear: Build a vendor-neutral, open and interoperable catalog for all lakehouse needs.

From vision to community-powered reality

What started as a focused effort within Snowflake quickly garnered attention from the wider community. We knew for Polaris to truly achieve its potential, we couldn’t be the only ones holding the reins. Polaris needed to evolve into a truly open project; it needed open governance. Step 1 was giving it away. The ASF’s Apache Incubator provided the perfect environment for Polaris, fostering a diverse contributor base and guiding the project through the rigorous processes of the Apache Way.

Over the past 18-plus months, Polaris has seen incredible momentum. The project has grown exponentially, attracting a diverse group of developers, data architects and users who share our commitment to open data standards. While we at Snowflake are still proud contributors to the project, we are even more proud to be just some of the many contributors to the project. 

Every day we see an ever-growing list of contributors, new integrations, new capabilities and increased adoption across the industry. Polaris has established a truly independent existence from Snowflake, and this graduation from incubated project to TLP reflects just that.

What's next for Polaris?

As an Apache TLP, Polaris is now poised for even greater acceleration. The graduation signifies the project's maturity, stable governance and vibrant community. 

Snowflake remains a committed member of the Apache Polaris community. We look forward to continuing our contributions, collaborating with fellow developers and championing the principles of open data interoperability.

Congratulations again to the entire Apache Polaris community on this monumental achievement! There’s a new star in the open source sky, and the future of the open data lakehouse is brighter than ever.