L 
Looker
Survived because governed metrics are the thing chat answers need.
NOT REALLY
why this verdict
Keep paying — Google has not replaced it
Google's version overlaps, but does not finish the data & BI job, so this one still earns its $3,000/mo.
- A named launch, not a vibe named, unlinked
- Semantic models are what make AI answers trustworthy. Google, December 11, 2024 — no announcement link recorded yet.
- How much of the job it covers not the job editorial call
- Parts of it. The job still needs the tool to get finished.
- Is there a free way to do it? yes
- 2 of 2 listed replacements have a usable free tier: dbt and Metabase.
- What the call is worth $36,000/yr
- $3,000/mo at the entry paid tier — $36,000 a year per seat.
Reason composed from the fields above missing: announcement linked recorded: free replacement listed recorded: two or more escape hatches
- Threatened by
- Since
- December 11, 2024
- List price
- $3000/mo
- Per year
- $36,000
The backstory
Looker's LookML semantic layer defines what "revenue" means once, so every report agrees. That turned out to be exactly the missing ingredient for reliable AI analytics — a model querying a governed semantic layer gives defensible numbers, while a model querying raw tables gives confident nonsense. Google leaned into this with Gemini in Looker.
Escape hatches
D 
dbt Semantic modelling with an open-source core.
getdbt.com open_in_new M 
Metabase Cheaper BI.
metabase.com open_in_new2 of 2 replacements have a usable free tier.