Key Takeaways:
– Microsoft recruits Mustafa Suleyman and Karén Simonyan, co-founders of Inflection AI, as part of their AI arm.
– Rick Scurfield leads as CRO at VAST Data ahead of its forthcoming IPO.
– Vultr welcomes Amit Rai and Nathan Goulding as new General Manager of AI and SVP of Engineering respectively.
– Precisely promotes Christopher Hall to Chief Product Officer.
– Julie Irish becomes Couchbase’s inaugural CIO.
– Cribl announces a slew of executive hires, including Ali Tierney, Matthew Kelly, Zach Johnson, Abby Strong, and Lisa Nielsen.
As we conclude March, we bring you some notable staff movements within the dynamic big data community, featuring Microsoft, VAST Data, Alation, Vultr, and more.
Microsoft Reinforces AI Division with DeepMind Executives
Microsoft has strengthened its AI venture by persuading Mustafa Suleyman and Karén Simonyan, co-founders of AI startup Inflection AI, to take the reins. Former DeepMind executive Suleyman was appointed CEO of Microsoft AI, while Simonyan, another DeepMind alumnus, joined the team too. A selection of the Inflection AI team also made the move, boosting the division with their impressive AI contributions over the years.
Rick Scurfield Sets Sail with VAST Data
In anticipation of an IPO looming on the horizon, VAST Data has secured Rick Scurfield in the crucial role of Chief Revenue Officer. With over two decades of experience at NetApp, Scurfield plans on propelling VAST Data’s mission to transform AI infrastructure, an endeavour he finds exhilarating given the significance of these technological times.
Fresh Leadership at Vultr
Shaking up the cloud space, Vultr has announced Amit Rai as its new general manager of AI and Enterprise Cloud and Nathan Goulding its senior VP of Engineering. Rai previously held a position at Zoominfo and Goulding joined from Equinix. J.J. Kardwell, CEO of Constant, Vultr’s parent company, is excited about the real-world expertise they bring, believing their leadership will invigorate Vultr’s agenda of high-performance cloud computing.
Christopher Hall Ascends at Precisely
Data integration and integrity provider Precisely, heralds Christopher Hall as their new Chief Product Officer. Initially from Pitney Bowes, Hall relishes the opportunity to ensure the data underpinning organisations’ GenAI and advanced analytics initiatives is accurate and trustworthy, driving successful outcomes.
Yvonne Wassenaar Recruits Alation to her Boarding List
Alation has benefitted from the appointment of Yvonne Wassenaar to its board of directors. With her extensive board service in firms like Arista Networks, Forrester Research, JFrog, and Rubrik, her appointment bolsters Alation’s commitment to helping businesses harness trusted AI.
Astronomer Launches Appointments
Astronomer aims high by introducing Mike Haas as Chief Revenue Officer and Leo Zheng as Chief Marketing Officer. Haas, in his previous role at Clumio, and Zheng, with 15 years of marketing experience from MongoDB, come as Astronomer recognises the growing importance of Apache Airflow in data management and making informed business decisions.
Couchbase Gets Its First CIO
Couchbase has announced Julie Irish as its first-ever CIO. Formerly a VP at New Relic, Irish is looking forward to backing Couchbase’s technological-driven scaling growth, particularly as it increases customer transition to their proprietary Couchbase Capella offering.
Cribl Splurges on Executive Talent
Data observability firm Cribl is ending March strong with a string of high-level hires. They welcomed Ali Tierney, ex-Snowflake, as their new Chief Revenue Officer. Matthew Kelly, who became the company’s chief legal officer last summer, Zach Johnson (recently promoted to CFO), Abby Strong (elevated to Chief Market Officer), and Lisa Nielsen, who joined as chief people officer in February.
These appointments, CEO Clint Sharp affirms, are critical in equipping Cribl’s customers with innovative solutions that meet increasingly complex data needs.
Clearly, the big data sector is a dynamic space, continually evolving with promising appointments and technological advancements. As we usher in April, intriguing developments and career moves undoubtedly await us. Until then, stay tuned for our latest updates.
