Streamfest day 2: Smarter streaming in the cloud and the future of Kafka

The second day of Redpanda Streamfest 2025 focused on enhancing data streaming skills for real-time applications, analytics, and AI, featuring a series of engaging sessions, product demos, and panels. Key highlights included Redpanda's introduction of Cloud Topics for cost-effective cloud streaming, integration with Apache Iceberg for efficient data management, and Shadowing for disaster recovery. The event also showcased Redpanda Connect's ability to capture real-time changes from Microsoft SQL Server, and the flexibility of Redpanda Serverless with AWS PrivateLink. Customer sessions highlighted serverless streaming benefits for companies like Crane Worldwide Logistics and Rivian's transition from Kafka to Redpanda for improved cost-efficiency. The panels explored the future of Kafka in the AI era and the impact of Apache Iceberg on data connectivity and productivity. The event concluded with interactive AMA sessions and prize giveaways, emphasizing Redpanda's commitment to community engagement and innovation in the data streaming landscape.