[5] Data blending is similar to extract, transform, load (ETL).
[7] With some software, data isn't written into a database, which is very different to ETL.
[8] Representing the increased demand for analysts to combine data sources, multiple software companies have seen large growth and raised millions of dollars,[9] with some early entrants into the market now public companies.
[10] Examples include AWS, Alteryx, Microsoft Power Query,[11] and Incorta,[12] which enable combining data from many different data sources, for example, text files, databases, XML, JSON, and many other forms of structured and semi-structured data.
Similar to Tableau, the data blend only happens on the reporting layer.