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Rows, columns, and consequences

Speak at Rootconf’s Special Edition on Databases

Background

The ACM SIGMOD/PODS Conference 2026 will be held in Bengaluru from 31 May to 5 June 2026.

To mark the occasion, Rootconf is hosting a special community edition focused on databases on 29 and 30 May, bringing together practitioners and researchers who build, operate, and study modern data systems.

Following the success of the Distributed Data Systems track at Rootconf 2025, community members suggested creating a space where industry engineers and database researchers can exchange ideas, experiences, and lessons learned.

This edition of Rootconf aims to do exactly that. With several database researchers and SIGMOD participants visiting Bangalore, this is an opportunity to explore how database ideas move between research papers and production systems.

Theme

Modern applications are pushing databases in new directions: distributed architectures, AI-driven workloads, global-scale deployments, and increasingly strict reliability and security requirements.

At this special Rootconf edition, we invite talks that explore how databases are designed, operated, optimized, and sometimes broken. We are particularly interested in submissions that bridge research insights and production experience.

Example topics include:

Database architectures

  • Object-store–backed databases
  • Disaggregated databases (compute–storage separation)
  • Lakehouse and hybrid architectures
  • HTAP systems (hybrid transactional/analytical processing)
  • Serverless or multi-tenant database systems

Performance and scalability

  • Query optimization and indexing strategies
  • Operating databases at extreme scale
  • Observability and performance debugging
  • Cost-aware query planning and workload optimization

AI and vector workloads

  • Vector databases and hybrid search architectures
  • Retrieval systems and embedding pipelines
  • AI-assisted query optimization
  • Integrating LLM applications with databases

Reliability and operations

  • Replication, failover, and disaster recovery
  • Incident postmortems and failure analysis
  • Schema evolution and safe migrations
  • Multi-region database operations

Security and governance

  • Fine-grained access control and row-level security
  • Data lineage, auditability, and compliance
  • Privacy-preserving database systems

War stories and lessons learned

  • Production incidents that reshaped your architecture
  • Unexpected performance regressions
  • Lessons from large-scale database migrations
  • When theory met reality

If your talk fits the broader theme of building or operating modern databases, we encourage you to submit even if it doesn’t fall neatly into the categories above.

Formats

We welcome submissions in multiple formats:

  • 30-minute talk – technical deep dive
  • 15-minute talk – focused engineering experience
  • Lightning talk (5 minutes) – new ideas, experiments, or early work
  • Birds of Feather (BOF) proposals – discussion on focussed topics
  • Hands-on workshops - where participants follow instructors on their laptops

If you are presenting research at SIGMOD, consider submitting a practitioner-focused version of your work for the Rootconf audience.

What makes a strong submission

We look for submissions that clearly explain:

  • The problem you encountered
  • The system design or approach you adopted
  • Trade-offs and alternatives you evaluated
  • Lessons learned that others can apply

Real-world engineering stories and detailed technical insights are especially welcome.

Meet the curation team

  • Anirudh Rowjee – Founder, Bengaluru Systems meetup
  • Kumar Abhijeet – Software Engineer, Index Exchange
  • Sandeep Joshi – The Fifth Elephant DEI track editor; Uber
  • Sunil Sayyaparaju – The Fifth Elephant reviewer; Aerospike
  • Unmesh Joshi – Distinguished Engineer, Thoughtworks

Join the Rootconf review team

If you have significant experience working with databases, have spoken at conferences, and are willing to review submissions, we’d love to hear from you.

📧 editorial@hasgeek.com

Why speak at Rootconf

  • Share your work with database engineers, distributed systems practitioners, and researchers
  • Receive constructive feedback from an experienced review committee
  • Engage with the SIGMOD community visiting Bangalore
  • Contribute to conversations that connect academic ideas with production systems

Deadline

30 April 2026
Every submission will be invited to give a 15-minute virtual pitch to the review team before final selections.

Questions?

If you have questions about the CfP, submission process, or talk ideas:

📞 Call or message Rootconf: +91 76763 32020
📧 Email: info@hasgeek.com

For sponsorship inquiries:
💰 sales@hasgeek.com

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