2024 Data Engineering Trends

In 2024, data engineering is experiencing significant shifts driven by AI integration, economic pressures, and evolving job roles, prompting data teams to adopt more versatile skills and cloud-native technologies. These trends are leading to a convergence of software and data engineering roles, with increased emphasis on efficiency and the need for data teams to transition from cost centers to profit centers by creating AI-enhanced, revenue-generating products. AI is reshaping the job market, with companies reallocating resources towards AI development and fostering growth in hybrid roles that blend traditional data engineering with software and platform engineering. The adoption of event-driven systems and data lakehouses is rising due to budget constraints and the demand for real-time data processing, while GitOps is becoming a popular methodology for managing data infrastructure changes. The competitive landscape in data tools is pushing companies to balance open-source and commercial offerings, with open-source LLMs gaining traction alongside more affordable commercial AI applications.