Senior Data & AI Engineer (Databricks Specialist)

Cognida; Hyderabad; On-site; INR 6,000,000 - 9,000,000; Full time

Job summary

Cognida.ai in Hyderabad, India, seeks a Senior Data & AI Engineer (Databricks Specialist) to design, build, and accelerate next-generation data architecture. You will bridge complex data engineering with tangible business value, owning end-to-end data pipelines and governance.

The role requires 10+ years, Databricks Unity Catalog expertise, and a proven ability to deliver rapid, concrete demos demonstrating data and AI capabilities to stakeholders across time zones.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in CS or BE/B.Tech (or equivalent) required.
• 10+ years of experience in data engineering and AI/ML workloads.
• Proven ability to deliver quick, concrete technical demos and POC-scale projects.

Responsibilities

• Design and implement robust data pipelines on Databricks Lakehouse.
• Own data governance, security, and lineage using Unity Catalog.
• Prototype end-to-end demos (live dashboards, real-time pipelines, LLM/RAG).
• Collaborate across global time zones with minimal supervision.

Skills

Databricks Mastery

Data Governance

Python/PySpark

SQL

Spark

Education

Bachelor's degree in CS or BE/B.Tech

Tools

Unity Catalog

Delta Lake

Spark

MLflow

Workflows

Job description

About Cognida.ai

Our Purpose is to boost your competitive advantage using AI and Analytics.

We Deliver tangible business impact with data-driven insights powered by AI. Drive revenue growth, increase profitability and improve operational efficiencies.

We Are technologists with keen business acumen - Forever curious, always on the front lines of technological advancements. Applying our latest learnings, and tools to solve your everyday business challenges.

We Believe the power of AI should not be the exclusive preserve of the few. Every business, regardless of its size or sector deserves the opportunity to harness the power of AI to make better decisions and drive business value.

We See a world where our AI and Analytics solutions democratise decision intelligence for all businesses. With Cognida.ai, our motto is ‘No enterprise left behind’.

A highcaliber Data & AI Engineer who can operate independently while seamlessly collaborating across global time zones.

Position Overview

We are seeking a dynamic, self-driven Data & AI Engineer with deep expertise in the Databricks ecosystem to design, build, and accelerate our next-generation data architecture.

In this role, you won't just write backend pipelines; you will be the bridge between complex data engineering and tangible business value.

A critical measure of success in this role is the ability to rapidly build and execute concrete, high-impact technical demonstrations that showcase the power of unified data and AI.

Because we operate globally, you must thrive in an autonomous, highly flexible environment, collaborating effectively across diverse time zones.

Education

Bachelor's degree , BE/B. Tech in CS or equivalent

Experience

10+ years

Location

Hyderabad,India

Position

Senior Data & AI Engineer (Databricks Specialist)

Key Responsibilities

• Databricks Architecture & Governance Design and implement robust data pipelines utilizing the Databricks Lakehouse platform. Take ownership of data governance, security, and fine-grained lineage using Unity Catalog.
• Rapid Prototyping & Demos Quickly conceptualize, build, and present functional, end-to-end data and AI demos (e.g., live dashboards, real-time pipelines, or LLM/RAG prototypes) to stakeholders and clients.
• Core Data Engineering Build scalable, efficient ETL/ELT pipelines using Spark (PySpark/SQL), Delta Lake, and structured streaming. Ensure optimal performance tuning, partitioning, and cost-management of Databricks clusters.
• Global Collaboration & Autonomy Work independently with minimal supervision, managing your own schedule to align with global, cross-functional teams.

Required Skills & Qualifications

• Databricks & Governance Mastery Proven track record implementing Databricks Unity Catalog for data governance, access control, and data lineage. Deep understanding of Databricks architecture, including Delta Lake, serverless compute, and Workflows.
• Core Data Engineering Excellence Strong foundational knowledge of data engineering principles (star schemas, dimensional modeling, data warehousing vs. data lakes). Advanced proficiency in Python/PySpark and SQL. Experience building robust orchestrations and handling both batch and real-time streaming data. Experience in building AI/ML workloads (e.g., MLflow, LLM integration, or RAG frameworks) within Databricks.
• Agility & Communication Exceptional ability to build quick, concrete POCs (Proof of Concepts) and technical demos that clearly translate data capabilities into business solutions. Excellent communication skills, with the ability to clearly articulate technical concepts to both technical and non-technical audiences.

Preferred Qualifications

• Certifications such as Databricks Certified Data Engineer Professional or Databricks Certified Machine Learning Professional.
• Experience integrating Databricks with enterprise ecosystems, cloud provider native services (AWS/Azure/GCP), or modern BI tools.