Microsoft spins up Azure HorizonDB to take on distributed Postgres rivals

Steven

Microsoft spins up Azure HorizonDB to take on distributed Postgres rivals

Summary

Microsoft has launched Azure HorizonDB, a fully distributed PostgreSQL-compatible database service designed to compete with hyperscaler and third-party distributed Postgres offerings such as AWS Aurora DSQL, Google AlloyDB, CockroachDB and YugabyteDB. Microsoft claims 100% compatibility with open source PostgreSQL and says HorizonDB uses a re-engineered storage layer to deliver much higher scale, performance and availability than its existing Azure PostgreSQL products.

Key technical claims include autoscaling storage up to 128 TB, scale-out compute up to 3,072 vCores, sub-1 millisecond multi-zone commit latency, enterprise security and integrated AI features such as DiskANN vector indexes with predicate pushdown and one-click AI model management tied into Microsoft’s AI Foundry. HorizonDB is not serverless at launch — compute must be provisioned and replicas added by customers, while storage autoscaling is automatic. Microsoft has not detailed pricing.

Key Points

  • Azure HorizonDB: a new fully distributed PostgreSQL-compatible service from Microsoft, claiming 100% Postgres compatibility.
  • New storage layer aims to boost performance, scalability and availability versus prior Azure Postgres offerings.
  • Scales to 128 TB storage and up to 3,072 vCores with multi-zone commit latency under 1 ms (Microsoft claim).
  • Integrated AI capabilities include DiskANN vector indexes with predicate pushdown and built-in AI model management linked to AI Foundry.
  • HorizonDB is not serverless at launch — compute is customer-configured; storage autoscaling is automatic.
  • Positions Microsoft against AWS, Google and third-party distributed Postgres vendors (CockroachDB, YugabyteDB, pgEdge, PlanetScale).
  • Analysts see this as part of cloud providers converging on Postgres-compatible, cloud-native DBs with AI features close to transactional data.
  • Microsoft continues to invest in Postgres ecosystem (earlier Postgres extensions and document DB work), while also promoting SQL Server 2025.

Context and relevance

PostgreSQL usage has surged among developers and cloud providers are racing to offer managed, cloud-native Postgres variants with added scale and AI features. HorizonDB is Microsoft’s strategic play to keep Azure competitive in transactional and hybrid AI workloads by reducing the wiring needed between OLTP systems and AI tooling. For teams evaluating multi-cloud or cross-cloud portability, the growing fleet of Postgres-compatible services could ease migration — but differences in extension support, latency, cost and exact compatibility still matter.

Why should I read this?

Short version: if you run Postgres at scale or plan to bolt AI on to your transactional data, this matters. Microsoft just dropped a purpose-built, distributed Postgres service with vector search and model management baked in — it could save you a lot of plumbing. Read the details if you care about latency, extension compatibility and cloud lock-in.

Author style

Punchy: Microsoft isn’t dabbling — HorizonDB is a clear statement that Azure wants parity (and more) with other hyperscalers on distributed Postgres and AI-enabled databases. If your stack relies on Postgres or you’re shopping cloud DBs, this is worth a close look.

Source

Source: https://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.com/2025/11/19/microsoft_azure_horizondb/