Natural Language Interfaces for Tabular Data Querying and Visualization:
  A Survey
Weixu Zhang Yifei Wang Yuanfeng Song Victor Junqiu Wei Yuxing Tian Yiyan Qi Jonathan H. Chan Raymond Chi-Wing Wong Haiqin Yang
The emergence of natural language processing has revolutionized the way users
interact with tabular data, enabling a shift from traditional query languages
and manual plotting to more intuitive, language-based interfaces. The rise of
large language models (LLMs) such as ChatGPT and its successors has further
advanced this field, opening new avenues for natural language processing
techniques. This survey presents a comprehensive overview of natural language
interfaces for tabular data querying and visualization, which allow users to
interact with data using natural language queries. We introduce the fundamental
concepts and techniques underlying these interfaces with a particular emphasis
on semantic parsing, the key technology facilitating the translation from
natural language to SQL queries or data visualization commands. We then delve
into the recent advancements in Text-to-SQL and Text-to-Vis problems from the
perspectives of datasets, methodologies, metrics, and system designs. This
includes a deep dive into the influence of LLMs, highlighting their strengths,
limitations, and potential for future improvements. Through this survey, we aim
to provide a roadmap for researchers and practitioners interested in developing
and applying natural language interfaces for data interaction in the era of
large language models.