The Case for a Semantic Layer

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Barb Wixom reads MIT CISR's May 2026 research briefing, which she co-authored with Hippolyte Lefebvre, Christine Legner, Nick van der Meulen, and Cynthia M. Beath. See the text version and related content at https://cisr.mit.edu/publication/2026_0501_SemanticLayer_LefebvreWixomLegnerVandermeulenBeath_Audio. Abstract: A semantic layer is a system of technologies and techniques that organizes and maintains a consistent and unified representation of data from various sources that is interpretable by humans and machines. MIT CISR research indicates that leaders are feeling pressure to increase their investments in semantic technologies and techniques that can store metadata and instantaneously make data assets more useful to business users, AI models, and AI agents. This briefing describes a target state for a semantic layer and offers three next steps that leaders can take to ensure their investments in semantic technologies and techniques pay off.