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Darragh Murray

@darraghmurray.bsky.social
1.3K followers 1.1K following 672 posts

Chart-nerd working in strategic #data insights, #dataviz and analytics engineering. I write a lot about visual analytics and its place within the GenAI revolution. I write The Datavist newsletter thedatavist.substack.com

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Darragh Murray @darraghmurray.bsky.social · 22/06/2026
I was surprised that the data centres that power AI models are not simply in places near the traditional centres of 'tech' , but rather cluster around places where they have access to water and cheap(ish) energy. I explore this in my visual essay 'Who Powers AI?' motherduck.com/dive-gallery...
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Darragh Murray @darraghmurray.bsky.social · 22/06/2026
WHO POWERS AI? My visual essay on the AI data infrastructure and how it supports the work of big AI players like #OpenAI and #Anthropic. Visual powered by @motherduck.com and Claude using the excellent data from @epochai.bsky.social #datafam #datasky @dataBS Link: motherduck.com/dive-gallery...
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Darragh Murray @darraghmurray.bsky.social · 01/06/2026
@motherduck.com is there anyone I can talk to regarding Dives. They don’t seem to work in safari
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Darragh Murray @darraghmurray.bsky.social · 27/05/2026
Curious to know from people in my feed. How do you define an ‘insight’? Specifically, how do you define a ‘data-driven’ insight? #datasky #databs
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Darragh Murray @darraghmurray.bsky.social · 26/05/2026
open.substack.com/pub/thedatav... some thoughts and experiments on dashboarding in the age of AI #datafam #databs #datasky
open.substack.com
Dead on Arrival: The AI Dashboard Problem
Three prompts, three dashboards, and what the analytics practitioner still has to bring to the table in the age of AI-driven visual analytics.
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Kevin Fox @michigrim.bsky.social · 30/04/2026
A captcha that is a reference to the opening scene of Master and Commander
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Darragh Murray @darraghmurray.bsky.social · 21/04/2026
Well played
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Darragh Murray @darraghmurray.bsky.social · 20/04/2026
I like LLMs but sometimes they take you off on the deep end and you end up spending hours analysing something for very little outcome - and often with large opportunity cost. Sometimes just better to do the analysis yourself.
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Reposted by Darragh Murray
Simon Kuestenmacher @simongerman600.bsky.social · 20/04/2026
This history map shows the US bombing in SE Asia during the Vietnam War from 1965 to 1975. Blue dots are 1000 lb bombs or larger. Source: buff.ly/1KXSRrd
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News Eye @newseye.bsky.social · 18/04/2026
Someone has actually done this on Google 😂😂👏
The location of the Strait of Hormuz on google with the opening hours shown at Mon-Fri 9.30am - 4pm
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Darragh Murray @darraghmurray.bsky.social · 19/04/2026
I always grin when I use @anthropic.com Claude Code because it uses ANSI/ASCII art - something I myself used to make back in the early 90s as a kid when I ran a Bulletin Board System!! #dataSky, #dataBS #Claude en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ANSI_art
en.wikipedia.org
ANSI art - Wikipedia
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Darragh Murray @darraghmurray.bsky.social · 18/04/2026
I thought this post by Ryan Dolley on the 'Four Big Bets Reshaping BI' is very well written and pretty much captures how AI is creating a decision point for all major business intelligence platforms. Very worth reading. #dataBS #DataSky #datafam superdatablog.substack.com/p/the-four-b...
superdatablog.substack.com
The Four Big Bets Reshaping BI
When data display commoditizes, things get weird.
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Darragh Murray @darraghmurray.bsky.social · 18/04/2026
I've been a bit lax on Bluesky recently, but it seems the data community is still here! That's good!
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Darragh Murray @darraghmurray.bsky.social · 18/04/2026
Are my dashboarding days numbered? I've put Claude Design through its paces on visual analytics (@anthropic) - and here's my write up of the experience . thedatavist.substack.com/p/are-my-das... #dataviz #datafam #databs #datasky
thedatavist.substack.com
Are My Dashboarding Days Numbered? An Early Test of Claude Design
Claude Design just launched. Here's what the design-to-code pipeline actually does in the world of visual analytics, business intelligence and dashboarding.
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Darragh Murray @darraghmurray.bsky.social · 16/04/2026
Hey @motherduck.com - can you record and publish your excellent webinars! I can't find the latest one on Dives and I really want to watch it. Unfortunately, being in Australia, it's difficult to get up at 2AM to watch them live.
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Darragh Murray @darraghmurray.bsky.social · 15/04/2026
I asked a Claude-powered four AI agent team to debate the future of higher education using the Socratic method. Here's how it works and why it produces sharper strategic insight than a single prompt. thedatavist.substack.com/p/kill-the-l... cc: @anthropic.com #DataSky #DataBS #AI #AIAgents
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Darragh Murray @darraghmurray.bsky.social · 29/03/2026
Did a deep dive on just how good Will Ashcroft is and what he might have to do to be a Top 5 midfielder in the #AFL. roar-metrics.ghost.io/will-ashcrof...
roar-metrics.ghost.io
Will Ashcroft is good. But is he great?
Two premierships and two Norm Smith medals at 21 is already an outstanding AFL career. But how does Will Ashcroft compare to the competition's elite midfielders? Will Ashcroft is considered one of th...
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Darragh Murray @darraghmurray.bsky.social · 05/01/2026
Literally every text message my dad has sent me on a smart phone has been with the SLAM effect. That’s like a decade of SLAMz
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Darragh Murray @darraghmurray.bsky.social · 17/11/2025
A few people are writing about semantic layers recently, and now I've joined the fray with a small piece on 'Onboarding AI: Why Semantic Layers Matter'. You can read here: thedatavist.substack.com/p/onboarding... #databs #datasky #ai #genai
thedatavist.substack.com
Onboarding AI: Why the Semantic Layer Matters
Giving AI the context it needs so it stops making up numbers at the worst possible time.
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Reposted by Darragh Murray
Michael Friendly @datavisfriendly.bsky.social · 03/11/2025
📊 #dataviz #network 🕸️🕸️The first network diagram of this thingy now called the "internet". Tim Berners Lee diagram, March 1989. It shows documents described by hypertext, with hypermedia, authored by people in hierarchical groups, ...
Network diagram on first page of Tim Berners Lee's "Information Management: A Proposal"
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Darragh Murray @darraghmurray.bsky.social · 03/11/2025
Colour in data visualisation is not purely aesthetic - its strategic as well #databs #datasky #datafam open.substack.com/pub/thedatav...
open.substack.com
Colour as Strategy and Aesthetics: What the Bureau of Meteorology’s Radar Teaches About Data Visualisation
An ill-fated radar redesign reminds us that colour decisions are never cosmetic, they define how data is read and believed.
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Darragh Murray @darraghmurray.bsky.social · 26/10/2025
Some words on how I’ve done reasonably well in #tableau’s Iron Viz competition and some strategies for success when you’re visualising against the clock #dataSky #datafam #dataBS
open.substack.com
How to Do Reasonably Well in Data Visualisation Competitions
A practical guide distilled from multiple top ten qualifications in Tableau's Iron Viz.
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Darragh Murray @darraghmurray.bsky.social · 13/08/2025
They've also got one coming out for @duckdb.org #DuckDb
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Darragh Murray @darraghmurray.bsky.social · 13/08/2025
Naughty by Nature back with a reboot of their 1991 hip-hop classic, but for a new ai-driven age. #AI #MCP #dataBS #dataSky #MCPYeahYouKnowMe
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Darragh Murray @darraghmurray.bsky.social · 04/08/2025
@drdemography.com interesting article on divorce rates on the conversation. One pet theory I’ve always had was that people were getting married older and thus had already navigated a number of failed relationships before settling down, hence less divorce.Curious to know if any credence to my theory
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Darragh Murray @darraghmurray.bsky.social · 04/08/2025
In SQL I trust
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Ben Harrap @bharrap.bsky.social · 28/07/2025
It's been a while since I last shared my starter pack If you're a stats/data person in or from the Pacific region (not just Australia or Aotearoa) and would like to be included, please let me know! #statssky #episky #databs #rstats #python
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DataEngBytes @dataengbytes.bsky.social · 23/07/2025
Melbourne, the day has finally arrived! The doors to Day 1 of DataEngBytes 2025 are now open. Get ready for a full day of everything data engineering.
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Darragh Murray @darraghmurray.bsky.social · 25/07/2025
Day 2 of #DataEngBytes has started strong. I’m quite enjoying @olenakutsenko.bsky.social talk about ‘Bringing Stories To Life with AU’, which is both fascinating and fun. #dataBS #datasky
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Darragh Murray @darraghmurray.bsky.social · 24/07/2025
Really great to be back in Melbourne for the #dataengbytes conference. Not sure how I feel about the conference venue literally being the Collingwood Magpies training facility, but at least the food is great #databs #datasky
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Darragh Murray @darraghmurray.bsky.social · 16/07/2025
I was fortunate to be on the @dubdubdata.bsky.social podcast (unDUBBED) recently to talk about Model Context Protocol (#MCP) and #tableau, and more widely on the topic of AI & business intelligence. Listen in or watch the 'live' demo here www.youtube.com/watch?v=N1qP... #dataBS #dataSky #AI #dataviz
youtube.com
D18 When AI Meets BI: The Future of Data Work is Here - with Darragh Murray
YouTube video by dub dub data
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Heather Cox @heather-cox.bsky.social · 04/07/2025
#Tableau Ambassador nominations are open until July 25th, and I asked #Suno to generate a song to encourage the #datafam to get involved. So here is: #AmbassItOn ! suno.com/s/pi6v9tG8rG...
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Darragh Murray @darraghmurray.bsky.social · 30/06/2025
Cool to see some more folk playing with #tableau’s MCP server! Great write up by Sekou! medium.com/@sqlsekou/co... #dataBS #dataSky
medium.com
Connecting to Tableau MCP: A Deep Dive into Lakers Data Analysis
Connecting to Tableau MCP: A Deep Dive into Lakers Data Analysis
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Darragh Murray @darraghmurray.bsky.social · 25/06/2025
It seems #tableau has released an MCP server! I did a bit of a deep dive, connecting Tableau to Claude and running a few queries. You can read about it here! thedatavist.netlify.app/posts/2025-0... #Claude #AI #MCP #DataBS #DataSky #datafam
thedatavist.netlify.app
Early Experiments in Tableau’s New MCP Service: Connecting AI to Business Intelligence Platforms – thedatavist
A hands-on walkthrough of setting up and experimenting with Tableau’s new Model Context Protocol (MCP) server to enable natural language data querying through Claude AI.
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Darragh Murray @darraghmurray.bsky.social · 19/06/2025
This post from Seattle Data Guy on early data career is 100% gold. My one regret from my career was this point in particular. I missed out a lot because I was the only data guy #dataBs #datasky open.substack.com/pub/seattled...
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Darragh Murray @darraghmurray.bsky.social · 12/06/2025
Total Recall.
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Darragh Murray @darraghmurray.bsky.social · 11/06/2025
A great post from Dr Marco Motta on the pursuit of objectivity in data storytelling #dataviz #dataBS. Marco is both an expert in data viz and has a PhD in philosophy - so he has some unique perspectives that are worth engaging with www.linkedin.com/pulse/from-d...
linkedin.com
From Data to Dialogue: Why Pure Objectivity in Analytics is a Philosophical Dead End
Rethinking data visualization through the lens of phenomenology and hermeneutics In boardrooms around the world, a familiar refrain echoes: "Just show me the facts." "Let the data speak for itself.
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Darragh Murray @darraghmurray.bsky.social · 11/06/2025
Argh this hit hard !
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Reposted by Darragh Murray
Randy Au @randyau.com · 10/06/2025
This week on Counting Stuff, I had opportunity to vibe code a pdf extraction task for home, it went fine until things got really annoying. I still don't like it and am annoyed I can't write it off wholesale #dataBS www.counting-stuff.com/vibe-coding-...
counting-stuff.com
Vibe coding is delayed pain
The fact that it CAN work, but only with a ton of aggravation is the worst part of the whole thing...
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Darragh Murray @darraghmurray.bsky.social · 11/06/2025
Spent last few days diving into Model Context Protocol and honestly, it's got me thinking deeply about its impact on traditional business intelligence 🤔 . Keen to hear the thoughts of other AI/BI/data folks! Here's my post open.substack.com/pub/thedatav... #dataBS #dataSky #AI #MCP #dataviz
open.substack.com
MCP and the reshaping of data visualisation & business intelligence
Model context protocol may have a huge impact on the domain of insight retrieval
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Darragh Murray @darraghmurray.bsky.social · 10/06/2025
Recently have switched to using Obsidian for notes. Man, it's a beautiful application - particularly on the Mac.
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Darragh Murray @darraghmurray.bsky.social · 05/06/2025
Fairly damning!
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Darragh Murray @darraghmurray.bsky.social · 01/06/2025
A bit late to the party, but he's my game rating led match review of @brisbanelions.bsky.social v Essendon from last thursday (I've been sick!). Have a read if you're interested :) #AFL #AFLLionsBombers #footy roar-metrics.ghost.io/essendon-sca...
roar-metrics.ghost.io
Essendon Scare, McCluggage Flair
Brisbane Lions 13.12 (90) defeated Essendon Bombers 11.6 (72) at the Gabba. A dreaded lurgy struck me down this week, ruining any chance I might have had of getting to the Gabba to see the men’s team...
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Darragh Murray @darraghmurray.bsky.social · 31/05/2025
US politics seems completely confusing to me. The ability for the leader to just pardon folks on a whim seems completely open to abuse and undermines the integrity of the judicial system. Why is that permitted?
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Darragh Murray @darraghmurray.bsky.social · 28/05/2025
My newsletter is back! I discuss the rather pointless debate over which popular business intelligence tool is ‘better’, rather saying other factors usually decide which tool is adapted to by practitioners and organisations. #dataBS #datasky #tableau #powerbi substack.com/home/post/p-...
substack.com
The Tableau vs Power BI debate is largely a waste of time
The choice of business intelligence tool probably doesn't matter as much as you might think it does
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Darragh Murray @darraghmurray.bsky.social · 27/05/2025
It sometimes blows my mind that many of the real-life settings in Bluey are in the park just down the road from me. #bluey
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Darragh Murray @darraghmurray.bsky.social · 27/05/2025
Latest bit of Roar Metrics analysis - though a bit of 'non-analysis' as I didn't watch the full Brisbane Lions game. roar-metrics.ghost.io/2025-round-1...
roar-metrics.ghost.io
2025 Round 11: Hawks Hoodoo Houdini'd
Brisbane Lions 14.9 (93) defeated Hawthorn Hawks 8.12 (60) at the MCG. Straight up, I didn’t watch this match in full. I caught glimpses at the pub while catching up with friends in beautiful Kingscl...
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Alastair Otter @alastairotter.bsky.social · 26/05/2025
In Africa, 25% of the electricity is generated from low-carbon sources. Hydropower is the main source of low-carbon electricity, generating 17% of the continent’s electricity. theoutlier.co.za/charts/chart...
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Darragh Murray @darraghmurray.bsky.social · 26/05/2025
Player ratings for the @brisbanelions.bsky.social v the Hawks. #AFL #AFLHawksLions
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