Databricks names Simon Davies to lead APJ expansion
Databricks has appointed Simon Davies as Senior Vice President and General Manager for Asia Pacific and Japan as it expands its presence in the region.
Based in Singapore, Davies will oversee strategy, operations and growth across Australia and New Zealand, ASEAN, India, Japan, Korea and Greater China. He brings more than 30 years of experience in enterprise technology, data and cloud services, with senior roles at SAP, Splunk, Microsoft, Salesforce and Oracle.
The appointment comes as APJ posted more than 85% year-on-year growth in Databricks' fourth quarter. Databricks now employs more than 1,500 people across the region and is preparing to move into a 32,000-square-foot APJ headquarters in Singapore, quadrupling its footprint there.
Rising demand
Demand in APJ has been rising as organisations increase their use of artificial intelligence, particularly in financial services, telecommunications and the public sector. Regional customers include Atlassian, National Australia Bank, LG Electronics and Toyota.
Before joining Databricks, Davies was Regional President for Asia Pacific at SAP, where he oversaw strategy, operations, people, sales, services, partners and profitability across the region. Earlier, as Senior Vice President and General Manager at Splunk, he led regional expansion. He also advises chief executives and boards at high-growth technology companies on APJ market entry and development, and is a member of the Australian Institute of Company Directors.
Regional push
The appointment highlights the importance of Asia Pacific and Japan to Databricks as it looks to capture a greater share of spending on data and artificial intelligence systems. The company has been expanding its workforce and office footprint in the region while adding customers across multiple sectors.
Its regional growth is also supporting the delivery of products in market, including Lakebase, its serverless Postgres database for AI agents, and Genie, an AI agent that lets employees query company data in natural language.
"Simon brings not only deep regional and industry expertise but also an exceptional track record of building high-performing teams," said Ron Gabrisko, Chief Revenue Officer, Databricks. "His leadership will be instrumental in unlocking the next phase of growth for one of our fastest-growing regions, helping APJ organisations harness the full potential of data and AI to drive powerful business transformation."
"I'm excited to be joining Databricks at such a defining moment for APJ. This is one of the most digitally advanced and AI-ready regions in the world, where organisations are moving quickly from experimentation to scaled impact," said Simon Davies, Senior Vice President and General Manager for Asia Pacific and Japan, Databricks. "What sets Databricks apart is its ability to combine rapid innovation with strong execution, helping customers unify their data and turn AI, apps and agents into tangible business outcomes. The opportunity ahead is significant, and I look forward to working with our teams, customers and partners to accelerate that momentum and deliver meaningful impact across the region."