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Saving Minerva 61% on their Snowflake bill

Case study
Published on
29 Aug 2025
Minerva's costs were growing so fast they were considering migrating off Snowflake.
Instead, they cut their bill in half overnight with Espresso AI.
This gave them breathing room to prioritize transitioning to Iceberg.

Minerva is building AI-powered risk screening across Sanctions, PEPs, and Adverse Media. Minerva's proprietary AI analyzes 4.5 billion live data points through neural networks trained by AML experts to intelligently identify connections, flags, and risk factors with human-like judgment; going beyond mere data ingestion and deliver ing true understanding.

Headquarters
Toronto, Canada
Employees
11-50
Funding
Industry
Compliance
CRM
"Espresso AI cut our bill in half with no lift from our side. They were instrumental in reducing costs that were growing too fast for comfort” - Nataliia Mykytenko, Head of Engineering
Nataliia Mykytenko
Head of Engineering

Minerva AI streamlines AML name screening and investigations by automating onboarding screening for Sanctions, PEPs, and Adverse Media. Their platform reduces manual backlogs, builds accurate customer profiles, and analyzes risks with investigator-like intuition.

Minerva and Snowflake

Minerva uses Snowflake for:

  • Storing vast amounts of data, queried in real-time by clients doing AML screening and investigations.
  • Sending billing events through Snowflake to Tableau for billing measures.

But as they’ve grown, so has their Snowflake bill. So much so that they considered migrating off Snowflake. 

We suggested a middle ground: use Espresso slash the bill in half, and then move some data to Iceberg for further cost reductions .

Espresso AI Steps in with Smart Optimization

  • Instant Cost Optimization: Espresso AI’s optimization system reduced Snowflake costs by 61% by dynamically analyzing and predicting compute usage.
  • Custom Dashboard and Reporting: Espresso AI’s dashboard showcased detailed cost-saving insights, including historical trends and real-time data on expenditures and savings.
  • Flexible Contract Model: Espresso AI offered Minerva a pay-as-you-go model with automatic monthly renewals.

Cutting Snowflake Costs by 55%, Without Disruption

  1. Significant Cost Savings: Minerva saved over 61% on their Snowflake expenses while maintaining operational stability.
  2. Operational Scalability: Espresso AI’s solution seamlessly integrated into Minerva’s workflows, ensuring no disruption to internal operations or client services.‍
  3. Enhanced Transparency: With the Espresso dashboard, Minerva gained clear visibility into cost-saving metrics, helping with financial and operational planning.
"The team's support, coupled with the intuitive dashboard, helped ease our concerns."  - Nataliia Mykytenko, Head of Engineering

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