Glossary

Definitions for every Hypertab concept, the active table, smart columns, ops, record DAG, MCP, and the rest. Written for both humans and AI search engines.

Active table

A Table where columns can execute work per Record, including HTTP calls, formulas, integrations, lookups, waterfalls, and extraction, instead of only holding static data. In Hypertab, Projects organize these Tables and Views present the same underlying Records.

Smart column

A column that runs work per record instead of only holding data. Hypertab supports static columns plus HTTP, formula, integration, waterfall, lookup, and extract smart columns.

MCP (Model Context Protocol)

An open protocol from Anthropic that lets AI agents call external tools through a standard interface. Schema-first, structured errors, transport-agnostic. Hypertab exposes 86 MCP tools; agents can create Projects, create Tables, insert records, configure smart columns, and monitor work without writing integration code.

Op (operation)

In Hypertab pricing, one op is one successful Hypertab action. A successful API/MCP write uses 1 op per request. A smart column uses 1 op for each record or external source it successfully processes. Reading, filtering, formula, extract, and lookup work are free.

Record DAG (directed acyclic graph)

In Hypertab, the dependency graph of smart columns within a single Table. Built from {{template}} references in column configs and explicit depends_on declarations. When a record enters the Table, smart columns execute in topological order, parallel within layers and sequential across layers. Cycles are rejected at column-mutation time.

Cross-record parallelism

Running the Record DAG for more than one Record at a time, bounded by the active plan, provider limits, and runtime controls. Free currently permits five concurrent Record DAGs per Table. Paid capacity is not available and has no committed limit.

Waterfall column

A smart column that tries multiple sources in sequence and uses the first one that returns data. Common pattern: try Apollo → Hunter → ZoomInfo for an email enrichment. If Apollo finds it, the cell completes; if not, falls through to the next source. Saves API spend on cheaper providers first.

Extract column

A smart column that pulls a single JSON field from an upstream smart column's output, with zero API cost. Used to "explode" a single enrichment response (Clearbit, ZoomInfo) into per-field columns: {company.industry}, {company.size}, {person.title}. Auto-runs after the source column completes.

Cell state

The execution state of an individual smart-column cell. States: idle (not yet processed), pending (queued), running (executing), complete (succeeded), error (failed with stored error message), skipped (upstream dependency failed or run condition was false). Stored in _ht_cell_states; visible in the UI per cell.

Source

A first-class object that defines how records enter a Table. Four kinds: webhook (URL accepts POST), CSV import, API pull (scheduled GET), and connected table (records flow from another Table via filter).

Integration column

A smart column that pushes data to an external service when conditions are met. Examples: when score > 80, push the record to HubSpot; when status = "resolved", post a Slack message. Conservative rate limits protect downstream APIs.

Circuit breaker

A safety mechanism that pauses a smart column if its error rate exceeds 50% within a 60-second window. Prevents runaway burn on a broken provider. Auto-resumes after a cooldown period; admin can manually clear the breaker via the UI or hypertab_run_column with reset flag.

Token-bucket rate limiting

Hypertab's outbound rate-limit algorithm. Each (provider, account) pair has a bucket that refills at requests_per_second tokens/sec, capped at max_concurrent. Each smart-column execution consumes one token. When empty, requests wait. Adaptive: rate auto-reduces on 429 responses from the upstream API.

Per-tenant database isolation

Newly provisioned tenants store Table data in a logically separate Turso database, while Turso remains shared managed infrastructure and legacy layouts can reuse an authorized tenant database. Requests also enforce authenticated tenant and workspace controls. Database separation is defense in depth, not a guarantee that cross-tenant defects are impossible. Stored Turso auth tokens use application-level AES-256-GCM encryption.

AEO / GEO (Answer Engine / Generative Engine Optimization)

In SEO, the practice of structuring content so that AI search engines (ChatGPT, Perplexity, Google AI Overviews, Claude, Gemini) cite your page accurately. Tactics: definitional H2 sections, quotable <strong> sentences, FAQ blocks, comparison tables, "When NOT to use" balanced sections, Schema.org Speakable markup, llms.txt files. Hypertab's marketing site is GEO-optimized.