Databricks
Large (~7,000)
Pylon
Small (~70)
Best For
Databricks
Best for: Data engineers who want strong comp and deep technical pedigree at scale
Pylon
Best for: Early-career engineers who want YC-style startup intensity and direct product ownership at a small, fast-moving team
Ratings
DatabricksPylon
4.1
3.0
Overall
3.9
3.5
Work-Life Balance
4.0
3.1
Culture & Values
4.3
3.0
Comp & Benefits
3.8
2.8
Senior Mgmt
3.9
2.8
Career Opps
👍 82% Recommend
👤 88% CEO Approval (Ali Ghodsi)
👍 60% Recommend
👤 63% CEO Approval (Marty Kausas)
Culture Values
Databricks only
⚙️ Engineering-Driven🌱 Learning & Growth💎 Strong Comp & Equity🌈 Diverse & Inclusive
Pylon only
🚀 Ship Fast & Iterate🧩 Wears Many Hats
Shared
🎯 Direct Product Impact
Pros & Cons
Databricks
- Engineers who built Spark, Delta Lake, MLflow — deep technical pedigree
- Strong compensation and equity packages consistently above market
- Hypergrowth means org changes are constant — teams restructure frequently
- Some legacy Spark-era tech debt that can slow down new features
Pylon
- YC + a16z backed with strong product-market fit in B2B customer support
- Small team with outsized ownership — every engineer directly shapes the product
- Polarized reviews — aggressive culture reported by some employees
- Very early-stage with minimal processes — only 4 Glassdoor reviews
Bottom Line
Databricks
Choose Databricks if you want elite data infrastructure work with strong equity — but brace for constant org changes.
Pylon
Small YC + a16z-backed team with strong product-market fit in B2B support — but polarized Glassdoor reviews flag an aggressive culture and minimal processes.
Open Roles
Databricks — 842 jobs
💼 Sales / GTM
353
💻 Engineering
284
📋 Product
39
📣 Marketing
34
📊 Data
22
👤 HR / People
12
🧠 ML / AI
12
⚙️ Operations
11
🎨 Design
6
💰 Finance
5
⚖️ Legal
5
Pylon — 31 jobs
💼 Sales / GTM
11
💻 Engineering
10
🎨 Design
3
📣 Marketing
2
👤 HR / People
1
📋 Product
1
Summary
Databricks scores 4.1/5.0 on Glassdoor with a 3.9 work-life balance rating. Pylon scores 3.0/5.0 overall with a 3.5 WLB. That’s a 1.1-point gap on overall satisfaction.
Both companies share these culture values: Direct Product Impact. Databricks also emphasizes Engineering-Driven, Learning & Growth, Strong Comp & Equity, Diverse & Inclusive. Pylon also emphasizes Ship Fast & Iterate, Wears Many Hats.
On the hiring front, Databricks has 842 open roles and Pylon has 31 open roles.