## Overview This article, authored by Ray Hassan and Bikram Sankar Das from TCS (Tata Consultancy Services) and published on the MongoDB blog, presents a conceptual framework for building unified data platforms that support generative AI workloads. It is important to note upfront that this is primarily a marketing and thought-leadership piece rather than a detailed production case study with specific metrics and outcomes. The content describes architectural patterns and theoretical benefits rather than documenting a specific customer implementation with measurable results. The core premise is that organizations relying on legacy systems—particularly 1970s-era mainframes still common in industries like banking—face significant challenges in adopting AI due to fragmented, siloed data that is often stale by the time it reaches decision-makers. The proposed solution centers on implementing Operational Data Layers (ODLs) powered by MongoDB, combined with generative AI and vector search capabilities. ## The Operational Data Layer Concept The ODL serves as a centralized hub that integrates data from multiple transactional systems in real-time. This architectural pattern is positioned as the foundation for enabling generative AI in production environments. The ODL acts as an intermediary between data producers and consumers, consolidating information that would otherwise be trapped in silos across CRM, HR, billing, and other enterprise systems. From an LLMOps perspective, the ODL addresses a fundamental challenge: LLMs require access to current, accurate, and contextually relevant data to provide useful outputs. Without a unified data layer, organizations attempting to deploy LLMs face the choice of either working with stale batch-processed data or building complex point-to-point integrations between AI systems and multiple data sources. The document outlines several use cases for ODL-enabled Gen AI: - **Real-time customer interactions**: Customer service representatives gain immediate access to recent transactions, support history, and preferences, enabling LLM-powered assistance that can provide accurate, contextual responses. - **Account management automation**: Banking and retail customers can interact with AI-powered chatbots that query the ODL in real-time to deliver accurate account information. - **Compliance and reporting**: In regulated industries, the combination of ODL and Gen AI enables automated extraction, summarization, and structuring of compliance data from diverse sources. - **Metadata and governance**: The ODL supports advanced search functionalities for impact analysis and data governance across geographies. ## RAG Implementation Architecture The article includes a conceptual diagram showing Retrieval Augmented Generation (RAG) implementation using what they term a "converged AI data store." In this architecture, the data store provides context to LLM prompts, addressing the common challenge of grounding LLM outputs in organizational knowledge. The RAG pattern is particularly relevant for LLMOps because it allows organizations to enhance LLM responses with proprietary data without requiring model fine-tuning. The MongoDB platform is positioned as suitable for this purpose because it can store both the operational data and the vector embeddings needed for semantic search in a single database. Vector search is highlighted as a key enabling technology. The article describes vector search as translating high-dimensional data like text, images, and audio into vectors, enabling "accurate, intuitive searches." An example given is healthcare providers searching for similar patient cases by symptoms to enhance diagnostics—though this remains at the conceptual level without specific implementation details. ## Architectural Options for Data Processing The document discusses two primary architectural patterns for organizations modernizing their data platforms to support AI workloads: **Lambda Architecture**: This approach processes both batch and real-time data through three layers: - A batch layer that processes large volumes of historical data offline, with Gen AI enriching data through insights and predictions - A speed layer handling real-time data streams for immediate responses - A serving layer that combines batch and real-time data into a unified view, with MongoDB serving as the query and access layer **Kappa Architecture**: For organizations focused primarily on real-time analytics, this simpler architecture uses a single stream for data processing. MongoDB is positioned as the operational speed layer, supporting high-speed, real-time data updates enhanced by Gen AI. The choice between these architectures has significant implications for LLMOps deployments. Lambda architecture may be more suitable when LLMs need access to both historical context (for training or fine-tuning purposes) and real-time operational data. Kappa architecture may be preferable for applications where LLMs primarily need current state information rather than historical analysis. ## Data Modernization Journey The article outlines a progressive journey toward data modernization that enables AI capabilities: - **Basic operational data store**: Initial phase where read-heavy workloads are offloaded from legacy systems into MongoDB - **Enriched ODL**: Adding real-time analytics to transform raw data into actionable insights - **Parallel writes**: Enabling MongoDB to handle write-heavy operations - **System of transaction**: Replacing monolithic systems with microservices connected to MongoDB - **System of record**: Final state with domain-driven architecture providing scalability and flexibility This phased approach is relevant to LLMOps practitioners because it acknowledges that AI capabilities cannot simply be bolted onto existing infrastructure. The underlying data platform must be modernized to support the real-time, flexible access patterns that LLM applications require. ## Telecommunications-Specific Applications The article includes additional content about telecommunications industry applications, providing somewhat more concrete examples of ODL and Gen AI integration: - **Fraud detection and prevention**: A consolidated ODL serves as a gateway for AI-powered fraud detection. The document claims MongoDB platforms are "ingesting and storing terabytes of data from multiple platforms to leverage AI models, potentially saving millions of dollars for telcos." - **IoT device management**: Managing data generated by IoT devices for end-to-end services - **Product catalog management**: Real-time product personalization and analytics using ODL-powered systems These examples, while still largely conceptual, suggest production-scale deployments in the telecommunications sector. ## Critical Assessment It is important to approach this content with appropriate skepticism. The article is fundamentally a marketing piece published by MongoDB, co-authored with a consulting partner (TCS). Key observations: - **Lack of specific metrics**: The article does not provide concrete performance numbers, cost savings, or implementation timelines from actual deployments. - **Conceptual rather than implementation-focused**: The diagrams and descriptions remain at the architectural level without diving into production challenges like model versioning, prompt management, monitoring, or evaluation. - **Vendor-centric perspective**: The solution naturally positions MongoDB as the optimal choice without meaningful comparison to alternative approaches. - **Missing operational details**: There is no discussion of LLMOps-specific concerns such as prompt testing, model evaluation, latency management, cost optimization, or handling model failures in production. That said, the underlying architectural principles are sound. The integration of operational data layers with vector search capabilities for RAG implementations represents a legitimate approach to deploying LLMs in enterprise environments. The emphasis on real-time data access and the progression from batch to streaming architectures reflects genuine requirements for production AI systems. ## Technologies and Tools Referenced - **MongoDB Atlas**: Cloud database service positioned as the ODL - **Atlas Vector Search**: Vector search capabilities for semantic retrieval - **Atlas Stream Processing**: Real-time data processing for Kappa architecture implementations - **Online Archive/Federation**: Historical data management for Lambda architecture - **Retrieval Augmented Generation (RAG)**: Pattern for grounding LLM responses in organizational data The article serves as a useful introduction to thinking about data platform requirements for generative AI but should be supplemented with more detailed implementation guidance and independent case studies for practitioners planning actual deployments.