Lance v2 is a new file format developed to address the inefficiencies found in existing columnar formats like Parquet, especially in handling AI/ML workloads. Unlike its predecessor, Lance v2 abandons traditional encodings and row groups, instead allowing for flexible, plugin-based extensions and decoupling I/O from compute tasks to optimize performance. This format is designed to efficiently manage point lookups, wide columns, and very wide schemas, providing a more adaptable metadata structure that supports various encoding strategies and statistics without requiring format changes. It allows for "true" column projection and flexible metadata handling, making it suitable for a wide range of use cases, from storing non-tabular data to managing large files with numerous columns. Lance v2 aims to streamline data processing by eliminating the need for a rigid type system and enabling developers to add new encodings with ease. The initial implementation has shown promising performance, and the developers are seeking community feedback and collaboration to refine and expand its capabilities.