TypeDB Origins podcast: From Grakn to TypeDB. Why we changed the name.

Episode 2 of the TypeDB Podcast explores the transition from Grakn to TypeDB, and what it takes to evolve a database from prototype to product.

Cal Hemsley

In Episode 2 of the TypeDB Origins podcast, we dive into one of the most defining transitions in our history: the shift from Grakn to TypeDB.

This episode covers:

  • Why the Grakn name no longer fit
  • The deeper product evolution that drove the rebrand
  • Lessons learned from building a new kind of database, and what we’d do differently now
  • How we navigated a major technical and community shift without losing the core idea

Once again, it’s a candid, unscripted conversation between:

🧑 Ganesh Hananda (Head of Architecture)
🧑 Josh Send (CTO)
🧑 James Fletcher (former research scientist, now entrepreneur)

If you’re curious about the human side of building a database, and the challenges along the journey, we hope you’ll enjoy this.

Watch/Listen to Episode 2 on YouTube

And if you missed it, you can catch Episode 1 here, where we talk about the earliest ideas that shaped TypeDB, and the trade-offs behind polymorphism, inference, and schema-first design.

Share this article

TypeDB Newsletter

Stay up to date with the latest TypeDB announcements and events.

Subscribe to newsletter

Further Learning

New podcast series: TypeDB Origins

Hear the untold story of how TypeDB was built: the ideas, trade-offs, and lessons behind a truly expressive database.

Why SQL and Graphs Struggle with Complexity

Most production systems don’t fail because they’re slow. They fail when their structure becomes impossible to reason about. This post explains why SQL and graph databases struggle as systems grow more complex.

The case for a polymorphic database

Most databases can't model the real world. Learn how TypeDB brings polymorphism into the schema, so your data becomes safer, smarter, and easier to evolve.
Feedback