Python remains one of the most sought-after programming languages, according to a recent report by HackerRank that surveyed 116,000 developers from more than 160 countries.
Coding Dojo called it the “most lovable” programming language, praising it for its flexibility, versatility and ease of learning. Engineers from New York City agree. Research Engineer Alicia Bargar uses Python when working on the back end at Graphika.
“Writing this software in Python, I can write an analytic code that is highly optimized yet easily integrates with our production software,” Bargar said.
Whether applied to social network structures, logistics fulfillment or restaurant ordering, Python’s ease of use and adaptability complement numerous industries. Nick Blanchet, vice president of engineering at Ohi, praised Python for its clear syntax and testability, both of which lead to faster product iteration.
The list of tools and services built using Python is long and illustrious: just take a look at the technical projects coming out of these NYC-based companies.
Graphika maps “cyber-social terrain,” also known as the fabric of social network structures. That mapping helps deliver marketing insights, analyze influence and detect disinformation for its clients. Research Engineer Alicia Bargar is in charge of upgrading the company’s back end. She uses Python because it can easily span the research and software development communities.
Tell us about a project you're currently working on in Python.
I work at Graphika, a New York-based startup, where we survey the social media landscape to understand ongoing trends, analyze online communities and investigate possible disinformation campaigns. Our main technical strength relies on the combination of machine learning and social network analysis to sift through big amounts of data and find emergent patterns.
As a research engineer, I’m currently upgrading our company’s analytic back end to increase its performance capabilities and enable new methodologies and algorithms to be more easily integrated into our mapping process. Python was a natural fit for this project due to its pervasiveness across both research and software development communities. Even in cases where researchers write their primary code in C or C++ for maximum performance, they will often bind it to a Python API because of one of its main qualities: usability. By writing this software in Python, I can write an analytic code that is highly optimized yet easily integrates with our production software.
Python was a natural fit for this project due to its pervasiveness across both research and software development communities.”
What impact will this project have on your customers, your company or the industry as a whole?
This project is vital to the goals of Graphika, as it will enable our analysts to process greater volumes of data in significantly less time. Prompt analysis of this data will directly benefit our customers, who want timely trend analysis or who are interested in expanding their business with us.
The work we are doing is not only beneficial for our company, but also sets standards for the research community investigating disinformation campaigns. By upgrading our analyses, we can identify campaigns more accurately and rapidly, resulting in more effective responses to address this challenge. As Graphika’s analysts are continually learning and innovating, our technology team works hard to build software that can adapt to their needs and evolve alongside them.
BentoBox helps over 5,000 restaurants better their relationships with customers. Lead Software Engineer Tyler Adams is excited about using Python to help launch Bento Ordering, which allows restaurants to accept pickup and in-house delivery orders directly on their website, instead of through third-party vendors. Adams said using Python allows Bento Ordering to leverage existing e-commerce infrastructure while building out a rich new feature set that’s scalable and secure.
Tell us about a project you're currently working on in Python.
We recently launched Bento Ordering, an online ordering solution for restaurants to accept pickup and in-house delivery orders directly on their website. It is a low-cost alternative to other third-party online ordering platforms that provides a better experience for both the restaurant owner as well as the diner.
The payment providers we use have software development kits (SDKs) for Python that made development faster and more reliable. By using Python in conjunction with Django and Django Rest Framework, the team was able to leverage existing e-commerce infrastructure and build out a rich new feature set that was not only scalable, but also secure.
The payment providers we use have SDKs for Python that made development faster.”
What impact will this project have on your customers, your company or the industry as a whole?
Bento Ordering fulfills our company mission of nurturing the relationship between a restaurant and its diners. Our solution not only provides greater value for restaurants compared to similar products on the market, but it also gives back control of customer data to the restaurant owner, who can easily access emails and order details to drive repeat orders. The restaurant’s brand is front and center; diners see only the restaurant’s own logo and photos. For our company, it marks a turning point as we increase our offerings and value.
Ohi helps e-commerce companies in LA and New York offer same-day delivery and a better fulfillment experience. Nick Blanchet, vice president of engineering, used Python to create a network that intelligently connects warehouses to optimize fulfillment.
Tell us about a project you're currently working on in Python.
At Ohi, we are creating a smart network of micro-warehousing that relies on technology to connect the warehousing nodes in an intelligent fashion. Part of this project is creating a smart routing system that dynamically determines which warehouse in our distributed network can best fulfill an order based on a variety of criteria, including speed and cost.
Thanks to its clear syntax and easy testability, Python is a great language to build this layer when you take advantage of the robust mathematical packages available and the ability to quickly iterate toward the final version. As well, keeping our advanced logic layers in the same programming language as our API and ETL stack allows maximum developer productivity, exploration and learning.
Thanks to its clear syntax and easy testability, Python is a great language to build this layer.”
What impact will this project have on your customers, your company or the industry as a whole?
Our customers will be able to take full advantage of a distributed warehousing network by enabling lower-cost fulfillment and faster delivery times, concurrently. By expanding the availability of this kind of technology and logistics outside of the largest e-commerce companies and Amazon fulfillment, we allow all online brands to keep their brand identity while ensuring their logistical operations can keep up with customers’ expectations of fast, free online shipping.
