Emerson Gatchalian, the CDAO of the Blackbelt Team within Microsoft, shares his expertise on modern data platforms. He discusses the evolution of data governance strategies and the balance between centralization and decentralization. Gatchalian also dives into the cost-effectiveness of adopting existing solutions like Microsoft Fabric versus custom builds. Furthermore, he highlights how integrating AI with data can enhance customer service and drive innovation, particularly through utilizing unstructured data in generative AI applications.