Engineering leader who makes AI safe and fast in regulated software.
19 years in software at Philips, Amazon, Exeter and IBM. Today I lead AI-enabled transformations for medical-device engineering at Philips, working across 14 businesses and a global software community of thousands.
Work
AI in regulated software
Making AI useful where mistakes are not allowed
An AI-assisted traceability platform and a practical AI curriculum, built so medical-device engineers can use AI while a person still makes every regulated decision.
14
businesses using the traceability platform in production
Engineering excellence at scale
Raising the engineering bar across a whole company
Shared engineering standards, delivery-flow measurement and an evidence-based maturity report, reaching more than 4,500 developers.
4,500+
developers reached by shared engineering platforms and standards
Transformation
Paying down technical debt at scale
Lead coach for a technical debt and resource optimization program that realized about €2M in savings in 2021, with about €3M more identified.
~€2M
realized savings from a technical debt and resource optimization program in 2021
Scaling people
Growing engineers, not just systems
A better senior hiring process, mentoring engineers into senior technical roles, and more than a decade of teaching outside the job.
30+
engineers mentored who went on to senior technical leadership roles
150+
talks, workshops and training sessions since 2010
5,000+
people in those sessions
- Philips North America 2021 to now65
- Philips India 2018 to 202152
- Amazon 2016 to 201810
- Exeter 2013 to 201520
- IBM 2007 to 201312
Speaking and teaching
- 2026IEC 62304: why it matters to you, and how AI can help you stay compliantPhilips University. Recurring, rated up to 9.1 out of 10.
- 2025Hands-on GenAI for software teams, three days in personPhilips engineering site, Plymouth, Minnesota. Self-rated confidence rose from 4.5 to 7.6 out of 10.
- 2024SOLID principles seriesPhilips software community. One talk rated 8.6 out of 10 across 37 responses.
- 2023Back to basics: design, code, test and review patternsPhilips Innovation Campus, Bengaluru. About 50 engineers, in the room and online.
- 2021Less work, more value: why everyone's shifting leftThe Developers Conference, Brazil (virtual). International developer conference.
- 2019Developers are asked for more, more, more. How much is enough?Philips developer conference, Bengaluru. About 500 attendees.
What colleagues say
“Datta is a natural leader who inspires and motivates people across all levels, regardless of reporting lines, seniority, or team boundaries.”
“I discovered that Datta is a master of leading digital transformation through influence.”
“Keep leading the way! Thank you for the collaboration!”