On December 14, 2021, the US Patent and Trademark Office granted Couchbase its first patent for a novel approach to cost-based optimization (CBO) for document-oriented database queries, marking a significant achievement for the company's engineering team. CBO is a process that selects the most efficient way to execute a database query by evaluating the costs associated with various resources such as memory, CPU, and disk usage, and has traditionally been used in SQL databases. Couchbase's implementation of CBO for NoSQL databases, specifically for their N1QL queries, is a pioneering advancement that distinguishes Couchbase from other NoSQL database providers, as it allows for more efficient query execution and resource management, leading to improved performance and reduced costs. This innovation has important implications for enterprises relying on Couchbase for mission-critical applications, as it enhances database performance and aids in meeting service-level agreements (SLAs).