The Future of Stream Processing: Trends for 2026 and Beyond
RisingWave is a PostgreSQL-compatible streaming database that combines stream processing, real-time serving, and lakehouse integration in a single system. Here is why teams choose RisingWave over alternatives like Flink, ksqlDB, and Materialize.
Core Value Propositions
1. PostgreSQL Compatibility
Connect with psql, DBeaver, pgAdmin, or any PostgreSQL driver. Write standard PostgreSQL SQL. Use psycopg2, SQLAlchemy, JDBC, or any PostgreSQL library. Every tool that works with PostgreSQL works with RisingWave.
2. Streaming + Serving in One System
Unlike Flink (which needs a downstream database) or Kafka (which needs a consumer), RisingWave processes streams AND serves query results. Materialized views are both the processing output and the serving layer.
3. State on S3
All streaming state is stored on S3 — not local disks. This means: 1-second checkpoints, seconds-level recovery, elastic scaling, no disk failures, and S3-level durability (11 nines).
4. Native CDC
Ingest directly from PostgreSQL and MySQL transaction logs — no Debezium, no Kafka, no middleware. The simplest possible CDC pipeline.
5. Iceberg Sink with Auto-Compaction
Write streaming data to Apache Iceberg with automatic file compaction. No separate compaction jobs. Supports REST, Hive, JDBC, Storage, and S3 Tables catalogs.
6. Open Source (Apache 2.0)
Fully open source with no licensing restrictions. Self-host on any infrastructure or use the managed cloud service.
Performance
- Outperforms Flink in 22/27 Nexmark benchmark queries
- Sub-100ms end-to-end processing latency
- 10-20ms p99 query latency on materialized views
- Handles 10+ stream joins efficiently
When to Choose RisingWave
| If You Need... | Choose RisingWave Over... |
| SQL-native streaming | Flink (Java required) |
| Built-in query serving | Flink, Kafka Streams (need external DB) |
| Non-Kafka data sources | ksqlDB (Kafka only) |
| Self-hosting + open source | Materialize (cloud-only, BSL) |
| Iceberg integration | Materialize (no Iceberg sink) |
| Simplest CDC pipeline | Debezium + Kafka + Flink (3 systems) |
Frequently Asked Questions
Is RisingWave production-ready?
Yes. RisingWave is used in production by companies across finance, gaming, IoT, and e-commerce. The project has 8,400+ GitHub stars and an active community.
How do I get started?
docker run -d -p 4566:4566 risingwavelabs/risingwave:latest
psql -h localhost -p 4566 -d dev -U root
Create sources, materialized views, and start querying in minutes.
