Business data is a capital asset. That's because, in a classical economic framework, data is a factor of production, is not depleted in the process of production, and gains value from human inputs, contributions, and sweat equity. As a capital asset, data's value goes far beyond the sunk cost of its physical instantiation in a database or even the cost of restoring if it were to be lost, stolen, or corrupted. Data's full value resides in the full range of potential business decisions, processes, engagements, and outcomes that it might support. And its value in those derives in great part on the data-driven insights that can be unlocked through analytic tools.

Take part in this CrowdChat, hosted by @IBMBigData, to explore Apache Spark's powerful machine learning capabilities while taking a look at the future of Spark. When you do, you'll be able to interact with subject matter experts as they focus on Spark-related technologies and trends, including SystemML and structured streaming. If this event will be your first experience with CrowdChat, don't worry--a CrowdChat merely organizes tweets into streams of conversation. We'll start a conversation thread, and everyone who wants to participate can do so simply by commenting, allowing us all to enjoy an engaging discussion. Vote for your favorite comments so that they can be featured prominently in the conversation.