Steven Hillion is the chief product officer of big-data startup Alpine Data Labs and Tim Guleri is managing director at Sierra Ventures, which invested in Alpine. We talk to them about big data: What is it, really? And how do you figure out which big-data companies to bet on? And what does the future hold for data analysis?

Plus: We tell you what to think about Windows 10 and Cortana, Facebook's misguided attempt to become relevant to the enterprise, and how everyone just loves to complain about brands on social media sites.