Confluent named a Leader for streaming data by Forrester Research

Confluent has been recognised by Forrester Research as a Leader in the streaming data platform sector after earning the highest possible scores in 14 separate evaluation criteria. The report identifies Confluent's strengths in messaging, processing, governance, and support for event-driven enterprise applications as key areas of distinction.

Forrester evaluation

Forrester's report situates streaming data as a vital resource for organisations seeking immediate, accurate insights. The research notes that fast decisions-particularly those driven by AI-depend greatly on access to current data, something traditional data storage systems often cannot provide at the required speed. Forrester identified Confluent as one of the fifteen most significant streaming data platform providers, reflecting its prominence in the field.

Platform capabilities

The evaluation gives Confluent the maximum score for a range of capabilities, including messaging, processing, governance, developer experience, event-driven agents, platform management, resource optimisation, fault tolerance, and performance architecture. Forrester also recognises the company's strengths in vision, innovation, roadmap, partner ecosystem, and community engagement.

Enterprise utility

The research states, "Confluent excels across the majority of capabilities, including messaging, processing, governance, developer experience, and fault tolerance. Confluent is an ideal fit for enterprises that wish to expand their streaming data use cases with enterprise-level governance, tooling, and ongoing innovation."

Customer experience

Confluent's customers provided above-average feedback in Forrester's review. They cited the company's variety of cloud-native deployment options, its rate of product development, and the suite of tools available for governance, development, and managing data at scale. Respondents also noted responsive and effective customer support.

Growth in streaming data

The report contextualises the adoption of streaming platforms by noting that the pace at which AI agents operate can outstrip the capacity of legacy systems if information is outdated. Real-time data streaming platforms are positioned as a remedy to this challenge, providing the infrastructure necessary to sustain quick, informed decision-making by humans and automated agents alike.

Company outlook

Confluent has built its platform to support enterprise clients beyond traditional data movement architectures, offering them the chance to integrate real-time data streaming across hybrid and cloud environments. According to the company, these improvements are vital as more organisations rely on smart systems and require tighter governance and automation across distributed data operations.

"Data streaming is the backbone of real-time applications and AI that power today's world. Our customers prove that every day. Their trust drives us to deliver a complete platform that streams, connects, processes, and governs data everywhere it's needed. With live, reliable data, they're building smarter systems, delivering real-time experiences, and unlocking the full potential of AI," said Jay Kreps, Co-Founder and CEO, Confluent.