Announcing Pull Queries in Preview in Confluent Cloud ksqlDB

ksqlDB applications traditionally rely on persistent queries to transform and manage Apache Kafka data in real time, but the introduction of pull queries offers an alternative that operates on a request-response model, allowing users to fetch the latest materialized view results akin to traditional databases. Pull queries, which are now available as a preview feature in Confluent Cloud ksqlDB, offer flexibility for stream processing workloads and can be executed directly from the web interface or via CLI with additional configuration for security. While beneficial for certain use cases, pull queries have limitations in preview, such as rate limiting, potential performance impacts on push queries, and a lack of SLA coverage, although they are currently free to use until they become generally available with consumption-based pricing. The new feature enhances ksqlDB's ability to support real-time applications by combining traditional database query capabilities with advanced stream processing, and users are encouraged to explore further through available documentation and quickstart guides.