Artificial Intelligence

For Generative AI, Metadata is All You Need

David Sweenor

(not really, but it’s a good start).

How Active Metadata Improves Generative AI’s Potential

Without Metadata — How Would I Know What Doughnut to Eat? — Photo by Author David E. Sweenor

Introduction

The other day, I was considering buying some new shoes, so I was perusing a few different online sites–one of which was Amazon. If you type “shoes” into the Amazon search bar, it returns over 60,000 items. Related searches included: “shoes for men”, “shoes for women”, “shoes for boys”, and “shoes for girls”. To narrow down the results, I could use the following fields: Amazon Prime, Prime Try Before You Buy, More-sustainable Products, Department, Customer Reviews, Amazon Fashion, Brands, Price, Deals & Discounts, New Arrivals, Shoe Size, Show Width, Seasons, Running Shoe Support Type, Shoes Special Features, Shoes Outer Material, Shoes Closure Type, Color, Height Map, Pattern, Business type, International Shipping, Amazon Global Store, and Availability.  All in all, there are twenty-two different filters for shoes. All of these categories and filters are prime examples of metadata.

What would shopping on Amazon without categories, reviews, or search filters be like? You’d just get a never-ending list of products. Online shopping without contextual filters is analogous to implementing AI without the guiding hand of metadata. Put another way, shopping on Amazon without metadata would be like searching for the proverbial needle in a haystack, blindfolded. In fact, according to Amazon documentation, you can have up to a hundred metadata fields in an items dataset schema.[1] Metadata can be things like price, availability, product description, and so forth. Data types include numerical data, categorical data, timestamps, and unstructured text. For Amazon Personalize, you can have up to twenty-five different metadata fields.[2] In our example, the ratio of metadata to data was twenty-two to one. However, some estimates suggest that the ratio of metadata to data is closer to 1000:1.[3]

With the explosion of data and the even bigger explosion of metadata, the ability to collect, analyze, and act upon this data sets more competitive businesses apart. At this point, we’re all well aware that generative AI has an immense potential to change how businesses operate. Did you know that AI’s effectiveness can be improved with metadata, the unseen force that provides context, meaning, and structure to the raw data? Understanding this relationship is crucial for businesses hoping to leverage AI for innovative solutions, productivity improvements, and competitive advantage.

Metadata is the blueprint for generative AI, enabling sophisticated AI systems to navigate hybrid data ecosystems more efficiently. By understanding the “data about data,” AI can make more informed decisions, identify patterns, and produce more relevant outcomes. This synergy between metadata and AI accelerates data processing and ensures the integrity and relevance of the information being analyzed, turning potential data overload into strategic insights.

For CIOs, CTOs, IT Managers, and CDOs, recognizing the value of metadata in the context of generative AI is an essential step toward digital transformation. It’s not just about harnessing the power of AI but doing so in a way that maximizes data’s potential through informed context-aware algorithms. This article aims to equip leaders with the knowledge to build robust, metadata-driven AI frameworks that drive innovation, efficiency, and business growth.

Background and Context

As the digital world becomes more dynamic, the significance of metadata has grown exponentially, transitioning from a mere technical necessity to a strategic asset for organizations. Metadata provides detailed insights into the nature and context of data, which enables businesses to manage, interpret, and leverage their data more effectively. The importance of metadata is underscored by the emergence of active metadata, which, unlike its passive counterpart, is dynamically updated and used to drive real-time data management processes and decision-making.

Active metadata is dynamic, continuously analyzed metadata that integrates across systems to optimize data management and usage. It contrasts with “passive metadata,” which is collected but not actively utilized. Active metadata facilitates a deeper understanding and operational efficiency by aligning data design with actual operational experiences, thus enabling automation, insights, and improved user engagement in data processes.

Integrating metadata with generative AI technologies represents a shift in how businesses approach data analytics and innovation. Active metadata, in particular, plays a critical role in enhancing the functionality of large language models (LLMs) by providing them with the context necessary to generate more accurate and relevant outputs. This interplay improves the efficiency of data-driven processes and opens new avenues for automation and intelligent decision-making.

Many companies are turning towards data fabrics and actively leveraging metadata to gain a competitive edge in today’s algorithmic economy. Incorporating metadata management strategies empowers organizations to navigate the complexities of data management, ensuring data quality and regulatory compliance. As a result, metadata has emerged as a cornerstone of the modern data stack, enabling businesses to unlock the full potential of their data assets and harness the power of generative AI capabilities.

What is Metadata?

Broadly speaking, metadata is “data about data”–remember the Amazon filters? For businesses, there are three main types of metadata. They include:

  1. Descriptive Metadata: This describes a resource, facilitating its discovery and identification. It encompasses various elements, including the title, abstract, authorship, and keywords.
  2. Structural Metadata: This provides information about the ‘container’ of data, such as how complex objects are put together, for example, how pages are ordered to form chapters. It helps in navigating and managing the parts of digital objects.
  3. Administrative Metadata: This encompasses data that aids in resource management. It comprises information like creation time, file type, and other technical details. Additionally, it can include metadata for rights management, providing insight into intellectual property rights.

Across these types, there are four broad categories of metadata, which include:

  • Technical Metadata: Information about data structure, format, and schemas. For example, database schema details, data types, and field lengths.
  • Operational Metadata: Data related to the operations performed on data, such as ETL (Extract, Transform, Load) processes, data lineage, and audit trails. For instance, logs of data updates, data source information, and process execution times.
  • Business Metadata: Descriptions that provide context to business users, including data definitions, business terms, and categorizations. Examples include glossary terms, data ownership information, and business rules associated with data.
  • Usage Metadata: Information generated by users’ interactions with data, including ratings, comments, and tags. Examples are user-generated tags on data assets, feedback on data quality, and usage metrics.

Additionally, some companies acknowledge many other types, which may include administrative and governance metadata, but I have omitted them for the sake of brevity.

The Importance of Metadata for Generative AI

Enhancing AI’s Understanding of Data

Contextualizing Data for AI

To maximize AI’s potential, companies need to furnish AI systems with data that are not only rich in detail but also in context. Enter metadata. Metadata acts as the AI’s compass, guiding it through the complexity of data to extract meaningful insights. This context enables AI systems to understand the nuances behind data, improving the accuracy and relevance of their outputs.

Boosting Data Quality and Reliability 

Ensuring the integrity of data fed into AI systems is non-negotiable. Through strategic metadata management, organizations can significantly enhance the quality and reliability of their data. Metadata provides a layer of validation and traceability, enabling AI to rely on the data it processes and, by extension, the insights it generates.

Suggested Action 

Implementing Metadata Management Solutions: research and adopt metadata management solutions. Such solutions should not only catalog data but also maintain its quality, context, and accessibility. Implementing these systems will bridge the gap between raw data and actionable AI insights, laying the groundwork for data-driven decision-making and strategic initiatives.

Next-Gen Data Management

Harnessing Active Metadata and Data Fabrics

Active metadata and data fabrics are emerging data management concepts, offering a dynamic and intelligent approach to handling complex data ecosystems. By leveraging these technologies, organizations can ensure their data assets, are not only well-organized but also readily accessible and analytically useful, facilitating real-time insights and decision-making.

Synergy with Data Catalogs and Glossaries

Integrating active metadata with data catalogs and business glossaries is crucial for enhancing data discoverability and semantic consistency across the enterprise. These technologies allow stakeholders to quickly find, understand, and trust the data they use, ultimately creating a data-driven culture.

Suggested Action

Develop Data Intelligence: To capitalize on the benefits of next-gen data management, leaders should focus on creating a unified framework that incorporates active metadata, data fabrics, catalogs, glossaries, and governance. Such a framework should prioritize scalability, interoperability, and user engagement, ensuring data management practices evolve with business needs and technological advancements. Make sure that data intelligence platforms cater to all users–business professionals, data analysts, governance, and IT users.

Driving Innovation and Business Value

Catalyzing Business Transformation at GXS Bank[4]

Dr. Geraldine Wong, the Chief Data Officer at GXS Bank in Singapore, emphasizes the foundational role of trusted data in deploying trusted AI technologies. With GXS Bank’s focus on leveraging AI to enhance customer experiences, offer superior products, and improve risk management, high-quality, well-defined data becomes paramount. Dr. Wong’s approach underlines the necessity for clear data ownership and high data quality to ensure the effectiveness of generative AI (GenAI) models. Even before the bank’s launch, her efforts to establish a strong data culture at GXS aimed to pivot decision-making processes from being based on intuition to being driven by data. This transformation is critical in realizing the full potential of AI in banking.

To support AI-driven decision-making, GXS Bank implemented Alation within their cloud-native infrastructure, which includes Snowflake, AWS, and Tableau. Alation’s role in data governance, metadata cataloging, and tagging is central to creating a trusted data environment. This platform enables GXS to responsibly manage consumers’ personally identifiable information (PII) and fosters a culture where both business and technical users can confidently rely on data for their needs. GXS is laying the groundwork for responsible AI use and governance by defining data terminology, ownership, and ensuring data discoverability.

The results of these initiatives are evident in the strong data culture within GXS Bank, where nearly all 300 employees use Alation to access trusted data. This culture shift has led to significant engagement with the platform, including thousands of SQL queries and searches, establishing Alation as the single source of truth for generative AI modeling and data-driven decision-making. Dr. Wong’s vision extends beyond current successes, aiming for a future where the bank’s employees instinctively leverage data and AI capabilities for various use cases, thereby enhancing customer convenience and trust in AI technologies. This case study exemplifies how establishing trust in data is crucial to building confidence in AI applications and governance.

Suggested Actions

Encouraging Innovation via Metadata-Driven AI: Adopting a culture prioritizing data governance and quality as the cornerstone for AI initiatives is vital. Organizations should foster environments where data is not only accessible and reliable but also strategically utilized to fuel AI-driven innovations, ensuring sustainable business growth and competitive advantage.

Implementing Metadata Strategies for Generative AI

Implementing metadata strategies for generative AI requires a structured approach, starting with establishing a robust metadata management framework. This involves defining metadata standards, ensuring system interoperability, and adopting tools that facilitate metadata aggregation and analysis. Such a framework improves data quality and enhances AI algorithms’ efficiency by providing them with accurate and context-rich data.

A key aspect of this implementation is the focus on active metadata, which dynamically updates and interacts with both data and AI models in real time. Active metadata supports a more adaptive and responsive AI ecosystem, enabling models to refine their outputs based on the latest data insights. Investing in technologies and practices that promote the continuous evolution of metadata ensures that AI systems remain relevant and effective over time.

Fostering a culture that values data literacy and metadata awareness across the organization is crucial. Training teams to understand and leverage metadata in their daily operations can dramatically increase the success of AI initiatives. By empowering employees with the knowledge and tools to use metadata effectively, businesses can unlock the full potential of their data and AI investments, driving innovation and achieving competitive advantage.

Summary

The strategic implementation of metadata within generative AI frameworks is beneficial and essential for any forward-thinking organization. This approach amplifies AI’s capabilities in understanding and leveraging data and drives significant business innovation and value. By embedding active metadata strategies into business operations, leaders can ensure their AI initiatives are dynamic and aligned with evolving business goals.

Integrating metadata and AI requires a commitment to continuous learning and adaptation. Businesses that invest in developing robust metadata frameworks and fostering a culture of data literacy position themselves at the forefront of digital transformation. This proactive stance enables them to unlock unprecedented efficiencies, insights, and opportunities.

To fully appreciate the transformative power of metadata in generative AI, let’s revisit shopping on Amazon without metadata—akin to oceanic navigation without a compass. This scenario underscores the indispensable nature of metadata in steering AI through the complex digital environment, ensuring precision and relevance in its outputs. With a deeper understanding of metadata’s role, leaders should refine their strategies, positioning their organizations at the forefront of innovation and competitive differentiation. Now, what shoes should I buy?

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[1] “Items Dataset Schema Requirements (Custom) – Amazon Personalize.” n.d. Docs.aws.amazon.com. Accessed February 10, 2024. https://docs.aws.amazon.com/personalize/latest/dg/item-dataset-requirements.html.

[2] “Users Dataset – Amazon Personalize.” n.d. Docs.aws.amazon.com. https://docs.aws.amazon.com/personalize/latest/dg/users-datasets.html.

[3] “Metadata, Not Data, Is What Drags Your Database down – Stack Overflow.” 2022. Stackoverflow.blog. February 7, 2022. https://stackoverflow.blog/2022/02/07/metadata-not-data-is-what-drags-your-database-down/.

[4] “GXS Bank Customer Case Study | Alation.” n.d. Www.alation.com. Accessed February 10, 2024. https://www.alation.com/customers/gxs-bank/.

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