The Brief: Salesforce has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire Waii, an enterprise-grade natural language-to-SQL platform. Waii’s technology allows business users to convert plain-language questions into complex SQL queries with high accuracy. Its core innovation lies in a dynamic metadata knowledge graph that maps an enterprise’s entire data ecosystem, enabling context-aware query generation and optimization. After the deal closes, Waii’s platform will be integrated into Salesforce Data Cloud, powering AI-driven insights and workflows across the Salesforce ecosystem, including Agentforce and Tableau Next. The acquisition is set to close in Salesforce’s third fiscal quarter of 2026, subject to standard closing conditions.
Read full details of the announcement about Salesforce’s acquisition of Waii at salesforce.com.
Analyst Perspective: The acquisition brings Salesforce access to Waii’s core technology, which uses a dynamic metadata knowledge graph to map an enterprise’s entire data landscape. This includes database schemas, relationships between tables and columns, business metrics, and governance rules.
Waii’s engine is designed to translate natural language into highly accurate SQL queries, accounting for different SQL dialects. Built-in query optimization ensures these queries are production-ready. The platform also supports enterprise integration, enabling broad deployment across data sources.
Once integrated into Salesforce Data Cloud, the technology will power AI-driven insights and workflows, including features in Agentforce and Tableau Next. Tableau will leverage the knowledge graph as the foundation for its next-generation semantic engine, enabling language-driven exploration of data that interprets user intent.
Waii’s defining feature is its dynamic metadata knowledge graph, a system that organizes database schemas, links between tables, business metrics, and governance protocols into a complete data map. It enables the translation of plain-language questions into deeply contextual and accurate SQL queries. The platform also includes a dialect-aware SQL compiler and built-in optimization to improve performance. This approach supports both accuracy and efficiency, ensuring queries are production-ready for enterprise needs.
Following the acquisition, Salesforce intends to embed Waii’s capabilities within its Data Cloud, creating a foundation for AI-powered workflows and insights. This integration will extend to Agentforce and Tableau Next, with Waii’s knowledge graph serving as the core of Tableau’s upcoming semantic engine. This advancement is expected to enable faster and more relevant analytics by understanding user intent rather than relying solely on keyword matching. The integration reflects a move toward more intuitive, language-driven data exploration tools in Salesforce’s product suite.
The acquisition is scheduled to close in Salesforce’s third fiscal quarter of 2026, pending customary closing conditions. Waii’s leadership team brings extensive technical expertise in data infrastructure, engineering, and knowledge graph systems. Their years of development work address the challenge of enabling fluent, secure, and scalable communication between people and data systems. Once the acquisition is finalized, these capabilities will be available to Salesforce’s global customer base, expanding access to advanced natural language data tools.
Salesforce’s planned acquisition of Waii demonstrates a focus on removing technical barriers in enterprise data access. Through incorporating Waii’s metadata knowledge graph into its ecosystem, Salesforce aims to offer context-aware, intent-driven analytics to a broader range of users. The integration with Data Cloud, Agentforce, and Tableau Next will support AI-enhanced workflows and provide a stronger foundation for semantic understanding across datasets. Waii’s technology offers adaptability to various SQL dialects, ensuring compatibility across diverse systems while maintaining accuracy and security. Once complete, the acquisition will expand Salesforce’s capabilities in helping organizations leverage their data more effectively, making insights easier to obtain for decision-makers at all levels.
The integration of Waii’s capabilities into Salesforce aligns with evolving workplace demands for faster, more intuitive access to insights. As organizations increasingly rely on data-driven decision-making, the ability to query and interpret information without technical bottlenecks supports greater agility. This approach can enable employees across departments to interact directly with data, fostering self-service analytics and reducing dependency on specialized teams. In a hybrid and distributed work environment, these capabilities provide consistent access to relevant information, regardless of role or location. Through streamlining data interactions, Salesforce is positioning its platform to meet the needs of a workforce that values immediacy, accuracy, and context in decision-making processes, ensuring productivity remains high in rapidly changing business conditions.