Sisense Review for UK AI-Infused Analytics

Sisense is an AI-powered analytics platform designed to help UK businesses infuse analytics everywhere, from embedding insights into applications and workflows to enabling self-service data exploration. It focuses on simplifying complex data and delivering actionable intelligence through its proprietary Elasticube technology and AI-driven features.

Key AI & Analytics Features for UK Businesses

Sisense integrates AI and advanced analytics capabilities to help UK organisations derive more value from their data:

1. AI-Assisted Data Preparation & Modelling (Elasticube)

Sisense's Elasticube is an in-memory data engine that allows UK businesses to connect and mash up data from various sources. AI assists in suggesting data relationships, cleaning data, and optimising data models for performance, making complex data preparation more accessible.

• Connect to a wide range of data sources (cloud, on-premise, databases, applications).
• AI suggestions for data modelling and relationship building.
• High-performance in-memory analytics for fast querying.

2. Sisense BloX & Embedded Analytics

A key differentiator for Sisense is its ability to create custom analytic applications and embed interactive dashboards and visualisations directly into other business applications, portals, or products used by UK companies. Sisense BloX provides templates and tools for building these actionable analytic experiences, often enhanced with AI-driven actions or recommendations.

• Embed analytics into existing UK business workflows and customer-facing applications.
• Create custom analytic apps with interactive visualisations and AI-triggered actions.
• APIs for deep customisation and integration.

3. Natural Language Query (NLQ) & Automated Insights ("Simply Ask")

Sisense offers "Simply Ask," an AI-powered natural language query feature that allows UK users to ask questions about their data in plain English and receive instant visualisations and answers. It also provides automated insights by proactively identifying trends, anomalies, and correlations in the data.

• Conversational analytics for business users in the UK.
• AI automatically generates charts and narratives from natural language questions.
• Proactive insight discovery to highlight important data points.

4. AI-Driven Forecasting & Predictive Analytics

The platform includes capabilities for time-series forecasting and can integrate with machine learning models to provide predictive insights. This helps UK businesses anticipate future trends and make proactive decisions.

• Built-in forecasting algorithms.
• Ability to integrate custom ML models for predictive scoring or classification.
• Helps UK businesses move from descriptive to predictive analytics.

Ease of Use & Implementation

Sisense aims to provide a balance between power and ease of use. While business users in the UK can leverage features like Simply Ask and pre-built dashboards, developing complex data models with Elasticube or building highly custom BloX applications typically requires more technical skills (data analysts, developers). Implementation for UK businesses can vary from cloud-based setup to more complex on-premise or hybrid deployments, often involving data integration and customisation services.

Pricing & Plans (UK Focus)

Sisense pricing is generally tailored to the specific needs and scale of the UK business, often requiring a custom quote. They offer flexible licensing models.

• Custom Quotes: Pricing is typically based on factors like data volume, number of users (creators and viewers), specific features required (e.g., embedded analytics, AI add-ons), and deployment model (cloud or on-premise).
• Focus on Value & ROI: Sisense often positions its pricing based on the value and ROI delivered through embedded analytics and AI-driven insights for UK businesses.

UK businesses should contact Sisense directly or work with a UK partner to get a detailed proposal and understand the total cost of ownership.

Customer Support & UK Availability

Sisense has a global presence with support and services available for UK customers:

• Dedicated Customer Success Managers: Often provided for larger UK clients.
• Technical Support: Via portal, email, and phone, with SLAs based on support plans.
• Sisense Community: Online forums for peer support and knowledge sharing.
• Professional Services & UK Partner Network: For implementation, training, and custom development.

Pros for UK Businesses

• Powerful Embedded Analytics: Excellent for integrating data insights directly into UK business applications and workflows.
• AI-Infused Insights: Features like Simply Ask and automated insight generation make data more accessible.
• Flexible Data Modelling (Elasticube): Handles complex data from multiple sources.
• Scalable Platform: Can support the needs of growing UK businesses and large enterprises.
• Customisable Analytic Applications: Sisense BloX allows for tailored data experiences.

Cons for UK Businesses

• Complexity for Advanced Customisation: Building highly custom BloX apps or complex Elasticubes requires technical skills.
• Cost Can Be Significant: As an enterprise-grade platform, it can be a substantial investment for smaller UK SMEs.
• Learning Curve: While some features are user-friendly, mastering the entire platform takes time.
• Resource Requirements for On-Premise: Client-managed deployments require internal IT resources for maintenance.

Alternatives to Sisense

For UK businesses exploring AI-powered analytics and embedded BI:

• Tableau (Salesforce): Strong for data visualisation and offers embedding capabilities, with growing AI features.
• Microsoft Power BI: Popular for its affordability, Microsoft ecosystem integration, and embedded analytics options.
• Looker (Google Cloud): Known for its data modelling layer (LookML) and embeddability, strong within the Google Cloud ecosystem. (Review to be created)
• ThoughtSpot: Focuses heavily on search-driven analytics and natural language interaction.

Verdict & Recommendation for UK Businesses

Sisense is a robust and innovative AI-infused analytics platform well-suited for UK businesses that want to go beyond traditional dashboards and embed actionable intelligence directly into their applications and workflows. Its strengths in handling complex data with Elasticube, providing AI-driven insights through features like Simply Ask, and enabling custom analytic experiences via BloX make it a powerful choice for data-driven UK organisations.

While it may require a greater investment and potentially more technical expertise for advanced customisation compared to some simpler BI tools, Sisense offers significant capabilities for UK companies looking to truly democratise data access and make AI-powered insights an integral part of their operations and product offerings. It's particularly compelling for UK businesses aiming to provide embedded analytics to their own customers or internal teams.