datasette-acl 0.6a0 is an alpha release that broadens the plugin's scope from table-level access control to a general resource-sharing system for Datasette. Alex Garcia led most of the development, enabling multi-user Datasette instances to apply fine-grained permissions across a wider range of platform resources. As an alpha, it signals architectural direction rather than a stable feature set, but matters for teams building access-controlled, collaborative Datasette deployments.
Datasette 1.0a34 ships native CRUD operations in the browser interface, letting users insert, edit, and delete rows directly from table and row pages. The feature was prompted by Datasette Agent, which recently gained SQL write support, creating an awkward asymmetry where the AI chat interface could modify data but the standard UI could not. The release moves Datasette meaningfully closer to a lightweight data-management tool rather than a read-only data publishing layer.
Simon Willison released datasette-tailscale 0.1a0, an experimental alpha plugin that connects a local Datasette server to a Tailscale private network (Tailnet) via a single CLI command. Using a Tailscale auth key and a hostname flag, it starts a localhost server alongside a Tailscale sidecar, making the database reachable at a friendly Tailnet URL. The plugin relies on Python bindings for the experimental tailscale-rs Rust library; Willison has filed an upstream issue about the proxy mechanism, indicating the implementation may change.
The 0.1a3 alpha release of datasette-apps patches two access-control bugs in the Datasette plugin ecosystem. First, a bypass that let users lacking the create-app permission create apps anyway has been closed. Second, it was previously impossible to grant edit or delete rights to non-owner users; the fix aligns those permissions with the existing view model — private apps remain owner-only, while non-private apps follow Datasette's standard permission system.
The datasette-apps 0.1a2 alpha tightens security by introducing an `apps-set-csp` permission that gates custom Content Security Policy origins, with an optional allow-list for non-privileged users. The Datasette Agent app-creation tool enforces the same rules. Usability improvements include keyboard navigation in the stored query picker, plus fixes for fragment link interception and full-screen mode rendering.
Simon Willison explored how to programmatically map SQLite query result columns back to their source table and column names — a capability that would let Datasette enrich query results with contextual metadata. He tasked Claude Code (Opus 4.8) with finding solutions, which surfaced three approaches: using the apsw library, calling SQLite's sqlite3_column_table_name() C function via Python ctypes, and parsing EXPLAIN bytecode output. The research is published as a GitHub README and covers the tradeoffs of each technique.
Simon Willison announced Datasette 1.0a33, an alpha release that extends the existing ?_extra= JSON API pattern beyond tables to cover queries and rows. The feature is now documented and presented as a significant step toward Datasette 1.0. Willison also used Claude Fable 5 in Claude Code and GPT-5.5 xhigh in Codex Desktop to build a custom extras API explorer demonstrating the new capability.
datasette-agent 0.2a0 lets tools ask users questions during execution through ToolContext. Unanswered questions suspend the agent turn, render as chat UI forms, and persist across server restarts. A new save_query tool can store agent-written SQL as a Datasette saved query, but only after explicit human approval.
Simon Willison released datasette-agent-edit 0.1a0 as a base plugin for Datasette Agent. It is intended to support future plugins that edit existing text, including collaborative Markdown, large SQL queries, and SVG files. The design follows Claude’s text editor tool pattern, exposing view, str_replace, and insert primitives so other plugins can reuse a stricter editing workflow.
Simon Willison released datasette-agent-micropython 0.1a0, an alpha aimed at letting Datasette Agent generate and execute Python safely. The project focuses on sandboxing, with MicroPython and WebAssembly-related techniques suggested by the tags. Willison says the early results look promising and that GPT-5.5 has not yet escaped the sandbox, though this remains an early alpha.
Simon Willison released micropython-wasm 0.1a1, a small update connected to Python, sandboxing, and WebAssembly. The release fixes limitations that appeared while he was trying to use it to build datasette-agent-micropython. The post does not list detailed changes, so this should be read as an early usability and compatibility improvement rather than a major feature launch.
Simon Willison sent the May 2026 edition of his sponsors-only monthly newsletter. Topics include rising AI costs, Anthropic's strong month, and somewhat disappointing model releases. The issue also covers conferences, podcasts, the launch of Datasette Agent, progress on Datasette, tools he is using, and miscellaneous extras. An April issue is available as a public preview.
datasette 1.0a32 is a minor bugfix release rather than a feature update. It fixes an issue with `INSERT ... RETURNING` queries executed through the new `/db/-/execute-write` endpoint. The release also addresses several `base_url` issues discovered while experimenting with Service Workers.
Datasette 1.0a30 has been released, featuring a new customizable "Jump to..." menu accessible via the "/" shortcut. The menu allows users to quickly filter and navigate to databases, tables, and debug options. Developers can extend this menu with custom items using the new jump_items_sql() plugin hook.
Simon Willison released datasette-agent 0.1a4, leveraging the new makeJumpSections() JS plugin hook in Datasette 1.0a30. Users can now press "/" from any page to open the "Jump to" menu and instantly access a "Start a new agent chat" input box. This update streamlines database interactions, allowing users to trigger agent-led data analysis seamlessly.
Simon Willison announced the release of datasette-fixtures 0.1a0, a new plugin designed to simplify plugin testing. It utilizes the new `datasette.fixtures.populate_fixture_database(conn)` helper introduced in Datasette 1.0a30. Developers can quickly test this functionality using `uvx` to generate mock database tables and retrieve sample JSON data without a full manual installation.
Simon Willison, the founder of the well-known open-source data analysis tool Datasette, has recently released the latest alpha version of…
Simon Willison's open-source AI assistant tool for Datasette, `datasette-agent`, has recently released version 0.1a3 in alpha. Datasette is an open-source…
Simon Willison has released the 0.1a1 early alpha version of datasette-agent-charts for his Datasette ecosystem. This plugin is designed to make it easier for…
Simon Willison, the creator of the well-known open-source data analysis tool Datasette, today released version 0.1a4 of the ecosystem plugin…
The Datasette plugin `datasette-llm`, maintained by well-known open-source developer Simon Willison, has released version 0.1a8 today. Datasette is an…
Simon Willison recently released the first alpha version (0.1a0) of a new Datasette plugin, `datasette-llm-limits`. This plugin is designed to address the…
Simon Willison has released version 0.1a1 — the latest early alpha — of `datasette-agent`, an AI agent plugin for his well-known open-source data exploration…
Simon Willison, the creator of the well-known open-source data analysis tool Datasette, recently released version 0.1a0 of a brand-new plugin called…