Jumpstart your journey into modern data engineering with Factor House Local. Explore pre-configured Docker environments for Kafka, Flink, Spark, and Iceberg, enhanced with enterprise-grade tools like Kpow and Flex. Our hands-on labs guide you step-by-step, from building your first Kafka client to creating a complete data lakehouse and real-time analytics system. It's the fastest way to learn, prototype, and build sophisticated data platforms.

Kpow's 94.3 release is here, transforming how you work with Kafka. Instantly query topics using plain English with our new AI-powered filtering, automatically decode any message format without manual setup, and leverage powerful new enhancements to our kJQ language. This update makes inspecting Kafka data more intuitive and powerful than ever before.

The EU Data Act takes effect in September 2025, introducing major implications for teams running Kafka. This article explores what the Act means for data streaming engineers, and how Kpow can help ensure compliance — from user data access to audit logging and secure interoperability.