Databricks to boost hiring, invest $250 million in India for AI expansion

Data analytics firm Databricks said on Thursday it will ramp up hiring and invest more than $250 million in India, doubling down on the country's artificial intelligence talent pool and growing AI investments.

The San Francisco-based company will increase its headcount by over 50% to more than 750 employees in India by the end of the fiscal year, it said in a statement.

The multimillion-dollar investment will support training initiatives, research and development (R&D) as well as go-to-market efforts such as hiring, the company added.

"Our investment in R&D in India, and particularly in Bengaluru, reflects our belief in the extraordinary technical talent found here," said Vinod Marur, Senior Vice President of Engineering at Databricks.

It also plans to hire over 100 R&D engineers at its new research center in Bengaluru, Marur added.

The company has launched a Data + AI Academy in India, aiming to train 500,000 partners and customers over the next three years.

Databricks, founded in 2013, offers a platform designed to help users ingest, analyze and build AI applications using complex data from a variety of sources.