22-25 April 2026
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Grant Fritchey

scarydba.com

Grant Fritchey is a Data Platform MVP and AWS Community Builder with over 30 years’ experience in IT, including time spent in support and development. Grant works with multiple data platforms including SQL Server and PostgreSQL as well as multiple cloud platforms. He has also developed in VB, VB.NET, C#, and Java. Grant writes books for Apress and Simple-Talk. Grant presents at conferences and user groups, large and small, all over the world. He joined Redgate Software as a product advocate in January 2011.

Sessions for 2026

Aren’t we all tired of AI?
 

This session focuses on efficient, responsible use of AI in the modern workplace, highlighting where AI adds measurable value and where it doesn’t. You’ll learn how to think critically about AI features, how to avoid over-automation, and how to use AI to amplify expertise rather than dilute it. Grant, Ben and Kellyn will also address common fears around job displacement and explain why AI succeeds best in the real world when paired with human judgment, context, and accountability. This session is designed for engineers, DBAs, and technical leaders who want clarity vs. hype on how AI fits into real environments today.

dbRosetta, An AI Generated Application and Database
 

Learn how AI was put to work to build everything from the database to the application and more.

Inside SQL Server 2025 Part 1
 

Join Bob Ward and friends to learn every aspect of SQL Server 2025 including AI built-in, Developer features, all of the core engine, Azure Arc, Fabric Mirroring, and more.

Inside SQL Server 2025 Part 2
 

Join Bob Ward and friends to learn every aspect of SQL Server 2025 including AI built-in, Developer features, all of the core engine, Azure Arc, Fabric Mirroring, and more.

Intelligent Query Processing: From Insight to Impact
 

Intelligent Query Processing in 2025 is next level in your query tuning process. Join us in this session to see live demos of how Intelligent Query Processing fits into your environment and improves performance.

PostgreSQL For Those Who Know SQL Server
 

Your chance to get an understanding of PostgreSQL from a SQL Server point of view.

Query Performance Enhancements in SQL Server 2025
 

Your chance to see the new enhancements in SQL Server 2025, focused on query performance and performance tuning.

Previous Sessions

Yes, You Should Monitor Azure SQL Database
Learn what is necessary to keep an eye on your Azure SQL Database in order to better tune it and reduce costs.
 
SQL Injection: How it Works, How to Stop It
Learn what SQL Injection is and all the mechanisms you should employ to help stop it.
 
Learn to Read Execution Plans
Learn how to understand and read execution plans.
 
Environment Provisioning: The Third Age
Step back through the ages and explore how database teams have approached creating environments for dev and test. Learn how, in the new age of provisioning, databases are delivered safer, faster, and more efficiently
 
DevOps and Data
Learn about data management and DevOps for the modern business.
 
Exploring Execution Plans
Learn the details behind how to read execution plans.
 
Statistics, Row Counts, Execution Plans, and Query Tuning
Row counts are the primary factor for choices made by the query optimizer. This session explores how row counts affects query performance.
 
Faster Provisioning with SQL Clone
Find out how the new SQL Clone enables self-service easy automation of database copies, near-instant at the time of need, using a fraction of the disk space, and allowing quick reversion to a baseline.
 
Automating Your Database Deployments
Deploying your database changes to production can be nerve-wracking. We'll discuss methods that take the stress out of the process by ensuring that you practise your deployments using continuous integration before you ever get near production
 
Getting Started Reading Execution Plans
Learn where to start reading execution plans and how to interpret them in order to understand how to tune poorly performing queries.
 
Monitoring Windows Azure SQL Server VMs and SQL Databases
Once you've decided to move to Azure with any of your databases, you're going to need to know how they're performing, this session shows you.
 
Query Tuning in the Clouds
Just because you're using an Azure SQL database does not mean you can avoid tuning queries. This session will introduce you to the tools you have available to identify poor performing queries, understand, and fix them. All in the cloud.