alphanu

Alphanu is an open-source software framework for building declarative data processing pipelines. It is designed to be platform-agnostic, running on workstations, on-premises clusters, or cloud environments. Users define workflows as directed graphs of data transformations, with an emphasis on reusability and reproducibility. Alphanu provides a core runtime, a library of common transformation operators, and a pluggable backend architecture that supports various data storage systems and messaging services.

The project began in 2019 as an internal initiative within a research group focused on scalable data engineering. The first public release appeared in 2020, and subsequent releases expanded streaming capabilities, introduced a plugin system for custom operators, and improved typing and schema validation. Alphanu is maintained by an international community of contributors and operates under an open-source license.

At its core, alphanu models workflows as directed acyclic graphs where nodes represent operators and edges carry data between steps. It includes a typed data model, runtime scheduler, and fault-tolerant execution with checkpointing. Pipelines can be written in YAML or JSON, with optional scripting in Python or JavaScript. The framework provides connectors, data provenance tracking, and a modular catalog of reusable components.

Alphanu is used for extract-transform-load processes, data integration across heterogeneous sources, and real-time analytics workloads. It is favored in environments that require auditable pipelines and easy experimentation. The project has seen adoption across academic labs, startups, and mid-sized enterprises seeking portability and reproducibility in data workflows.