Tableau Next is a new analytics platform within the Salesforce suite. In essence, it's trying to bring many of the most useful features of Tableau, a powerful and flexible data visualisation software under the Salesforce umbrella, to Agentforce users.
Googling Tableau Next will bring up a lot of technical jargon like "API-first", "unified data layer" and "trusted semantics", which to the average person (me included) doesn't explain much about what it's actually for. So, in simple English, here are a few things YOU can do with Tableau next.
The Broad Strokes
Tableau is a data visualisation platform that allows users to load in data, create semantic models to join/relate tables, and build dynamic charts using a handy-dandy drag-and-drop interface. Tableau Next takes a lot of this functionality, allowing you the same ease in building charts and developing insights from your data.
Tableau Next also comes with built-in AI tools which can do the heavy lifting on the technical stuff (e.g. the more "coding" type things), allowing you to navigate its many functions with ease even as a brand new user.
Create and share data models
Tableau Next allows you to load in data from multiple sources, including local files and SQL. Once loaded in, these can be stored on Tableau Next, making them easily accessible for other users as well.
You can also create a semantic model, which will allow you to load in multiple tables and specify how they're related. Handily, you can save this semantic model as its own object. This means that if you spend a lot of time building a model that lots of other people would need to use, they can just load yours up and get started; conversely, if you don't want to build a model but still need to make a dashboard from one, you can load in something someone else has built and go from there.
Building Charts
Once you have your data loaded in, you can create your own visualisations. Simply drag any field from your data into the view to create your axes or headers. You can select from a number of pre-built chart types, like line, bar and donut charts. You can also customise your charts in a whole host of ways, like adding labels or changing colours.
You can also use Tableau's syntax to write calculated fields. Let's say you have a "Sales" and "Profit" column, you could divide one by the other to calculate a Profit ratio. Once you have that field, you can drag that onto your view along with some kind of Date field. And hey presto! You have a chart of your Profit Ration across time, simple as that!
If you don't like charts, you can also use Tableau Next to build a custom table with ease using the Data Tables feature.
Building Dashboards
Once you have the charts you want, you can put them into a dashboard. Tableau Next's interface is very easy to navigate, allowing you to add text, visualisations, navigation buttons and filters (toggle and list) by selecting them on the menu. Any element you add can be moved or resized easily with a simple click-and-drag. You can also customise the elements of your dashboard by changing colours and adding/editing your borders. Easy!