Summary
Several prominent data engineering administrators and influential figures in the field include Lakshmi Narayan at Microsoft, Aarav Patel at Atlassian, and various leaders at companies like Informatica, which was recognized as a top vendor.
OnAir Post: Leading Corporate Data Engineers
About
Key Individuals and Companies
- Lakshmi Narayan (Microsoft):
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As a principal data engineer, Narayan has significantly impacted how Microsoft manages its data. - Aarav Patel (Atlassian):
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As Chief Data Engineer, Patel oversees Atlassian’s data architecture, particularly for team collaboration and project management tools. - Shailja Mishra (Microsoft):
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Recognized as a “Top Data Engineering Voice” on LinkedIn, Mishra shares her insights and experiences in the field, according to her LinkedIn post. .Opens in new tab
Recognized as the #1 vendor in the 2023 Data Engineering Market Study by Dresner Advisory Services.
Source: Gemini AI overview
Web Links
Data Tech Entrepreneurs
Top 50 in 2025
Source: Great Entrepreneurs
reat Entrepreneurs is pleased to announce The Top 50 Data Tech Entrepreneurs of 2025. In today’s economy, data tech has become essential to how businesses operate, make decisions, and innovate. It includes the tools and systems that enable organizations to collect, process, and analyze vast amounts of data in real time. As companies across every industry compete to unlock value from their data, the entrepreneurs leading the charge in this space are reshaping everything from supply chains and healthcare to financial services, retail, and beyond.
This year’s awardees are driving this transformation by developing AI-powered analytics platforms, real-time data streaming engines and solutions that enhance data quality, privacy, and governance. These founders and executives are creating technologies that power modern businesses. Their work is shaping how industries operate today—and how they’ll evolve tomorrow.
Among this year’s awardees, Curtis Liu, Co-Founder and Chief Technology Officer of Amplitude, is recognized for developing the core technology behind Amplitude’s product analytics platform, which helps companies understand user behavior to improve digital products. Peter Wang, Co-Founder and Chief AI and Innovation Officer of Anaconda, has helped shape Anaconda into a renowned data science platform, supporting over 45 million users across corporations, research institutions, and academia. Anil Chitkara, Co-Founder and Chief Growth Officer of Evolv Technology, is celebrated for advancing AI-powered physical security screening, enabling venues, transportation hubs, and public spaces to enhance safety through smarter, faster detection.
This year’s awardees were selected through a methodical process and careful consideration of each candidate’s career track record and industry contributions. Please join us in celebrating The Top 50 Data Tech Entrepreneurs of 2025.
1. Daniela Amodei
President and Co-Founder, Anthropic
Daniela Amodei is the President and Co-Founder of Anthropic, an AI research organization dedicated to building reliable, interpretable, and steerable AI systems. Its first product, Claude, is an AI assistant designed to handle tasks at any scale. The company’s research interests span multiple areas, including natural language processing, human feedback, scaling laws, reinforcement learning, code generation, and interpretability. Anthropic, which private investors are valuing at an estimated $18 billion, has partnerships with Google’s parent company Alphabet and Amazon.
Amodei co-founded Anthropic with her brother Dario Amodei, who serves as CEO, along with several former OpenAI researchers. Before Anthropic, Amodei spent nearly three years at OpenAI, where she held roles including Engineering Manager and Vice President.
Amodei has 14 years of experience and got her start in 2011 in business development at the IRIS Center at the University of Maryland, College Park, and later with Matt Cartwright for Congress. She also served as a founding recruiter at Stripe before shifting into AI research and policy. Amodei holds a bachelor’s degree in English literature from the University of California, Santa Cruz.
