How dbt Fusion Reshapes Analytics Engineering

This article details dbt Fusion, a ground-up rewrite of the dbt execution engine in Rust, launched in May 2025. Unlike the original Python-based dbt Core, which treated SQL as templated text via Jinja2, Fusion parses SQL into an abstract syntax tree (AST), enabling static analysis, column-level type checking, and real-time error detection in VS Code before queries reach the warehouse. It covers the shift from text-template to code-aware execution, state-aware orchestration, and implications for CI pipelines, local development, and cost reduction. The article also discusses what remains unchanged and provides practical workflow insights for analytics engineering teams.