This Qlik Connect 2026 session examines data integration, governance and strategies to scale artificial intelligence from pilot to production. Sam Pierson of Qlik, chief technology officer, joins hosts Rebecca Knight of theCUBE Research and Rob Strechay of theCUBE Research to discuss architecture patterns and operational practices for enterprise analytics and data platforms. Pierson draws on their experience building analytics and data platforms to address data integration challenges, semantic layers and metadata lineage. They also explain practical uses of multi-cloud platform style architectures to scale insights for business users while preserving governance and observability. They emphasize that data, not models, is the primary constraint when productionizing AI. Pierson argues that standards-based modular architectures reduce future rip-and-replace risk. They describe Qlik's approach of packaging differentiated capabilities for MCP integration while maintaining security and semantic governance and advocate iterative experimentation combined with human oversight and robust monitoring prior to closing production loops.