Alexey Grigorev on His Career, Data Science, and Writing
Eugene Yan
Alexey Grigorev, a lead data scientist at OLX Group, discusses his transition from Java software engineering to data science after watching Andrew Ng's machine learning course in 2013, and reflects that his two-year Master's degree in Business Intelligence was not optimal when six months of self-study could have sufficed. He emphasizes that a strong project portfolio matters more than formal credentials, and that becoming a senior data scientist requires taking end-to-end responsibility for problems, communicating effectively with stakeholders, and determining whether machine learning is actually the right tool before implementation. He advises early-career professionals to prioritize startups for broader experience but acknowledges that larger companies offer mentorship, mature processes, and the opportunity to work at scale.
Why it matters
How he switched from engineering to data science, what "senior" means, and how writing helps.
