Have you let dbt Copilot or another AI draft your model docs and tests?

AI can read your SQL and write column descriptions and basic tests, so documenting becomes reviewing a draft instead of writing from nothing.

How to automate it

How to automate “document tables, metrics and pipelines”

Here are 2 ways to spend less time on this, best first. Each comes with steps you can follow today.

60 min

typically, once a week

65%

of the time can be automated

Easy

to set up

Fix 1 of 2

Software featureBest fix

Use dbt's AI to generate docs, tests and semantic models

dbt Copilot and similar tools draft model descriptions, column docs, tests and semantic models from your SQL, which turns documentation from a chore into a review.

Typically saves about 50% of the time30 min to set up

1Turn on dbt Copilot in dbt Cloud, or use a coding agent with the dbt project open.
2Generate descriptions and tests for undocumented models; review and correct them.
3Require docs and basic tests on new models in your PR checklist.
4Publish docs in dbt Explorer or your catalog.

Tools: dbt Copilot · dbt Explorer · Claude Code, OpenAI Codex, Cursor or GitHub Copilot

Fix 2 of 2

Software feature

Put tables and metrics in a searchable catalog with AI search

A data catalog (Atlan, Unity Catalog, Snowflake Horizon, DataHub, dbt Explorer) lets people find tables, owners and definitions themselves, and AI search answers "where is X?" questions.

Typically saves about 40% of the time4 h to set up

1Turn on the catalog that comes with your platform, or use Atlan or DataHub.
2Mark trusted tables, add owners, and let AI draft descriptions you then review.
3Link the catalog from your data help channel.
4Answer "where is this table?" with a catalog link until people go there first.

Tools: Atlan · Databricks Unity Catalog · Snowflake Horizon · DataHub · dbt Explorer

Quick wins

Have you tried…

Have you let dbt Copilot or another AI draft your model docs and tests?: AI can read your SQL and write column descriptions and basic tests, so documenting becomes reviewing a draft instead of writing from nothing.

Who does this task

Roles in our library that list this as one of their common tasks. Each guide covers the rest of that role’s week.

Data / BI analyst Data engineer

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