Head of Data Platform (Data/AI/ML)

CoinDesk is the most trusted media, events, indices and data company for the global crypto economy. Since 2013, CoinDesk Media has led the story of the future of money and investing, illuminating the transformation in society and culture that comes with it. Our award-winning team of journalists delivers news and unparalleled insights that bring transparency, comprehension and context. CoinDesk Events gathers the global crypto, blockchain and Web3 communities at annual events such as Consensus, the world’s largest and longest-running crypto festival. CoinDesk Indices offers expertise in digital asset indices, data and research to educate and empower investors. For more information on CoinDesk media and events, please visit http://coindesk.com [coindesk.com] and for breaking headlines, data and indices visit http://coindeskmarkets.com [coindeskmarkets.com]

In November 2023, CoinDesk was acquired by the Bullish group, owner of Bullish, a regulated, digital assets exchange. For more information on Bullish, please visit https://bullish.com . CoinDesk operates as an independent subsidiary with an editorial committee to protect journalistic independence.

Reports to:

About the Role

As a leader in our data team, you'll be responsible for creating and nurturing a data platform that serves CoinDesk, CoinDesk Data, and Bullish Exchange. This platform will handle massive amounts of structured and unstructured data, enabling us to drive business intelligence, deliver client-facing data and analytics, and build cutting-edge data-driven products across all group businesses, globally.

You'll lead efforts to democratize data and AI/ML technologies, driving informed decision-making. We're seeking someone with deep expertise in the data lifecycle who excels in cross-functional collaboration to meet business goals and drive innovation.

Key Responsibilities

Data Platform:

• The candidate will oversee the creation of a core data platform that seamlessly integrates storage, ETL, and compute capabilities, ensuring data integrity, security, and performance. They will design robust data pipelines to efficiently manage and store large volumes of both structured and unstructured data, using advanced techniques like sharding, replication, and compression to optimize performance and cost. With experience in transitioning from centralized data teams to an enabling data platform, they will have strong opinions on data schemas and contracts. Their approach will incorporate data mesh concepts, treating data as a product and emphasizing the importance of SLOs and SLAs. 

AI/ML Platform:

• The candidate will lay the groundwork for developing LLMs and RAGs, consistently evaluating and implementing tools that support their creation, such as those for prompt engineering workflows and knowledge graphs.

Data Discovery and Governance:

• The candidate will work closely with teams to ensure effective, secure, and compliant data usage, addressing challenges like data lineage, discovery, and access/policy controls across datasets.

Leadership:

• The candidate will collaborate with teams to identify data needs, enabling exploration and analysis to drive informed decision-making. 

Qualifications

• 15+ years of experience in AI/ML, data science, and software engineering roles.

• Proven experience in transitioning from centralized data teams to enabling data platforms.

• Dedicated to delivering value with a product-focused and user-centric mindset.

• Hands on with a strong sense of ownership. Cares a great deal about what it is they are building.

• Ability to operate and thrive in a dynamic startup environment.

• Familiarity with a range of data lake ecosystems e.g. ClickHouse, Databricks and Snowflake.

• Familiarity with a range of big data technologies e.g. Kafka, Flink, Mantis, Spark, Presto, Trino, and Druid.

• Familiarity with a range of databases e.g. Redis, Postgres, MongoDB and BigQuery.

• Proficient in Python.

• Proficient in SQL.

• Well versed with standard practices and tooling for effective data engineering.

• Well versed with standard SDLC practices and tooling around build, test, deploy etc.

• Solid and opinionated knowledge of coding standards.

• Solid and opinionated knowledge of testing methodologies.

• Understands the value of quality.

• Understands why XP is important in software engineering i.e. outcomes over features, CI/CD, pairing etc.

• Computer Science or engineering related degree.

• Available to work in London.

EQUAL OPPORTUNITY

In an effort to attract, retain, develop and promote the most qualified individuals, CoinDesk is committed to treating all applicants and employees in a nondiscriminatory manner with respect to the terms and conditions of employment, without regard to race, color, religion or belief, sex, national or ethnic origin, ancestry, age, marital status, sexual orientation, gender identity, veteran status/service, physical or mental disability, or any other classification protected by applicable law. This mandate governs all aspects of employment, including recruitment, selection, promotion, training, education, social and recreation programs, compensation, discipline, termination and access to benefits.

ACCOMMODATION

CoinDesk is also committed to providing reasonable accommodations to individuals with disabilities. If you need a reasonable accommodation because of a disability for any part of the application process, please send an e-mail to recruiting@coindesk.com and let us know the nature of your request.