Connect PowerBI for auto-updates

Last updated: September 4, 2026

The PowerBI connector lets a Key Result or Initiative update itself from a Power BI semantic model, report or scorecard — a measure, a KPI value on a report page, or a scorecard goal. The setup flow (Update mode › Set up auto update, then a short chat) is the same for every connector and is described in Set up automatic updates from a connector. This article covers only what is specific to PowerBI.

Before you connect PowerBI

  • A Rhythms Admin has enabled PowerBI under Settings › Workspace › Connectors.
  • Your Power BI administrator has enabled two tenant settings (one-time). In the Power BI Admin Portal, under Tenant settings › Integration settings, enable Semantic Model Execute Queries REST API and Users can use the Power BI Model Context Protocol server endpoint (preview). If the second setting is off, Rhythms reports a "feature not available" error during setup.
  • You have a Power BI Pro or Premium license and access to the workspace that holds the data.

How PowerBI authentication works

You sign in with your Microsoft account (OAuth) from My connectors › PowerBI › Connect or when the setup chat prompts you. Rhythms requests Report.Read.All, Workspace.Read.All, Dataset.ReadWrite.All (the permission Power BI requires to run queries against a semantic model — Rhythms only reads) and offline_access. Each person connects their own account, unless an admin has shared a connection.

What you can track from PowerBI

  • A measure from a semantic model, with filters — Rhythms writes and runs the DAX query for you
  • A KPI value shown on a report page
  • A scorecard goal — its current value and status

Give Rhythms the report, dataset or scorecard name and the workspace. Describe filters in business terms ("Q3, North America, closed deals"); Rhythms shows the value before saving.

Limits

  • Rhythms reads what the semantic model currently holds. If the model refreshes on its own schedule, the Key Result reflects the last model refresh at sync time.
  • One workspace and one metric per connection.

Example prompts

  • "Track Q3 North America revenue from the Sales Performance dataset."
  • "Sync the Monthly Active Users goal from the Product Growth scorecard."

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