The Top 5 Neo4j Podcasts of 2020

This past year has been a strong one for the Neo4j community on the (digital) airwaves – especially for podcast listeners.

Members of the Neo4j community and wider graph ecosystem have been hard at work this year on some of the world’s most pressing challenges, and a few graphistas also had new books published about graph database technology. And, of course, those stories were captured for your listening delight.

In very loosely ranked order, let’s count down the top Neo4j podcast episodes of 2020:

#1. Interview with the Founders of CovidGraph

Or read the podcast interview transcript.

In this episode of the Graphistania podcast from April, co-hosts Rik Van Bruggen and Stefan Wendin interviewed two Neo4j community members – Alexander Jarasch and Martin Preusse – who co-founded CovidGraph to use graph technology to help fight the COVID-19 pandemic. With the pandemic still ongoing, this episode is still as relevant as ever in terms of how graph data technology is being used in real-world scenarios.

And if you’re new to the Graphistania podcast, check out the archive on Rik’s blog with all of the podcast episodes or if you’re not subscribed, here are the links for the podcast on iTunes, Spotify or RSS. (Believe me, you want to subscribe to this podcast!).

#2. Philip Rathle on the BBBT Podcast

Last February, Claudia Imhoff of the Boulder BI Brain Trust (BBBT) interviewed Philip Rathle, Vice President of Products at Neo4j. They talked about the most common use cases of graph database technology, why enterprise organizations need graph technology and the basics of graph data visualization.

This episode is a great introduction to graph data technology for non-technical listeners who want to learn more about what Neo4j could do for their enterprise teams.

#3. Chat with the Authors of Graph Databases For Dummies

Or read the podcast interview transcript.

In this special episode of the Graphistania podcast, Rik Van Bruggen and Jim Webber talk about their new co-written book: Graph Databases for Dummies (published by Wiley). Jim and Rik are both authors of previously published books on graph databases and Neo4j, respectively, so they talked about what was different for this book, including how their combined expertise made the book even better for readers.

All told, this is a great episode to give you a preview of the book and a behind-the-scenes look at why they wanted to write it (hint: it had to do with graphs and AI).

#4. Jim Webber on the GOTO Book Club Podcast

Or read the podcast interview transcript.

Earlier this month, Jim Webber was interviewed by Nicki Watt on the GOTO Book Club podcast about the Graph Databases book (published by O’Reilly) that he co-wrote with Ian Robinson and Emil Eifrem.

Jim and Nicki talk about the defining characteristics of a graph database, common graph data modeling pitfalls to avoid, and the most common use cases of graph technology – including an in-depth example of the FinCEN Files investigation where the ICIJ used Neo4j to uncover money laundering schemes.

They also take a closer look at the exploding field of graph data science and how graph algorithms are being used for connected data analytics.

#5. The “Emil Update”

Or read the podcast interview transcript.

It’s become a yearly tradition and even 2020 couldn’t stop it: CEO and Co-Founder of Neo4j, Emil Eifrem joined Rik on the Graphistania podcast for their annual chat on all things graph – looking back at the past year and forward to the year to come.

In particular, Emil spoke to what he believes are the four pillars / themes that will define the graph technology space in the next decade. If you’re interested in what the future holds for graph data technology – from the cloud to AI to more – this is a must-listen episode!