News Archives - Mercari India

May 1, 2026

When One Model Isn’t Enough: Building Multimodal Adult Content Detection for Mercari B2C

Abstract Every B2C product listing on Mercari Japan must be screened for adult content before it reaches buyers. We built a multimodal ML pipeline that analyses both product images and listing text to make these decisions at scale. This post describes the system’s design: a custom PyTorch fusion model that combines MobileNet V2 image embeddings with Japanese BERT text embeddings, run in parallel with third-party API, with an OR gate combining their outputs. We cover our choice of fusion strategies (concatenation MLP vs. cross-attention), why we decided to run two independent classifiers rather than relying on one, and what we found when we attempted to improve performance by sub-classifying adult contents into finer-grained categories. We also outline the offline evaluation framework used to validate these decisions. Content Moderation on a B2C Marketplace Managing the scale of Mercari Japan’s B2C catalog involves screening millions of listings, where every entry consists of seller-uploaded imagery and unstructured Japanese text (titles, descriptions, and category metadata). Ensuring these listings adhere to our safety policies is paramount, with adult content detection representing one of our most critical moderation challenges. The fundamental difficulty lies in the fact that “adult content” is a spectrum rather than a discrete binary class. On one end, we find unambiguous violations: explicit imagery or text that is clearly prohibited. At the other end, however, are edge cases where the content is benign in isolation but becomes problematic when combined. For instance, a piece of lingerie photographed on a mannequin is a standard product shot. The same garment, described with sexually suggestive language, shifts the listing into a different category. An art book containing classical nude paintings is a legitimate product. A cropped detail from one of those paintings, listed without context, raises different questions. This nuance implies that relying on a single… <a class="more-link" href="https://about.in.mercari.com/news/blog/when-one-model-isnt-enough-building-multimodal-adult-content-detection-for-mercari-b2c/">Continue reading When One Model Isn’t Enough: Building Multimodal Adult Content Detection for Mercari B2C</a>

February 4, 2026

Optimists, Pessimists, and Realists: Leading in an AI-Native World – Sanu Satyadarshi

As Mercari continues to scale its Artificial Intelligence capabilities, we’ve had the opportunity to work closely with engineers, managers (both technical and non-technical), and leaders across the organization. One thing has become immediately clear: almost everyone has a strong opinion about how AI will change our world, or at least how it will change their work. These perspectives are often deeply polarized. Some see AI as the most transformative shift since the internet. Others view it with skepticism or concern. Both reactions are understandable. What matters most, however, is how organizations learn to navigate these differing worldviews while continuing to build reliable, production-grade systems. To make sense of these dynamics, one useful way to look at AI adoption inside organizations is through three broad cultural lenses: Optimists, Pessimists, and Realists. This framing isn’t meant to judge or rank perspectives. Instead, it helps leaders understand motivations, sources of friction, and how to channel disagreement productively. Part I: Understanding the Three Cultures The Optimists: The Force Multipliers Optimists are often found among senior leadership and engineers who are directly building AI- and LLM-based products. Their energy is infectious. Conversations with this group are often filled with statements like, “This is the biggest shift since the internet.” From their perspective, AI is a genuine force multiplier, work that once took weeks can now be done in days, sometimes hours. While this is an oversimplification, the underlying momentum is real. What defines Optimists is not uniform motivation, but consistent enthusiasm. They are excited by faster product cycles, new technical possibilities, and step-changes in how businesses operate. In many organizations, they become champions of change, pushing teams to think bigger and move faster. At the same time, optimism without intellectual humility can become a liability. Healthy ambition must be paired with rigorous questioning. The strongest… <a class="more-link" href="https://about.in.mercari.com/ai-native/optimists-pessimists-and-realists-leading-in-an-ai-native-world/">Continue reading Optimists, Pessimists, and Realists: Leading in an AI-Native World – Sanu Satyadarshi</a>

December 1, 2025

Early Exposure, Real Growth, and a Team That Connects

Welcome to Inside the Manager’s Mind – where early exposure, real-world context, and team trust shape how engineers grow. In this edition, meet Archita Bansal, Engineering Manager at Trust and Safety team at Mercari, shares how a focused trip to our Tokyo office helped junior engineers get hands-on with the product, build cross-location collaboration, and step up their ownership in a big way. Building Teams That Grow Together At Mercari, we often talk about working across locations. But building a truly global team is much more than syncing calendars across time zones. It means creating opportunities for engineers to understand different cultures, work styles and product contexts, and to see how all of these come together in the way we build products. It’s equally about building trust across teams and countries so collaboration feels natural, not forced. As managers, one of the most meaningful things we can do is design experiences that help people grow, not only in their technical skills, but also in confidence, perspective, and ownership. Just as importantly, we play a key role in how they bring empathy and context into their conversations and decision-making, so they can contribute more thoughtfully to both their teams and the broader organization. What I Do I lead a horizontal engineering team at Mercari, working with cross-functional partners across locations. My focus is on enabling engineers to work effectively in a distributed, multicultural setup. Creating opportunities for exposure, learning, and ownership and building bridges between teams so collaboration is driven by trust and shared context. In short, I aim to make global work not just the way we operate, but the way we grow. A Strategic Opportunity During a recent business trip to our Tokyo office, I made a deliberate decision to bring along two of our junior engineers, Shivani and… <a class="more-link" href="https://about.in.mercari.com/news/blog/early-exposure-real-growth-and-a-team-that-connects/">Continue reading Early Exposure, Real Growth, and a Team That Connects</a>

November 4, 2025

Building Connections Beyond Language: Mercari at TransPerfect’s GlobalLink NEXT 2025

Last week, I had the wonderful opportunity to attend TransPerfect’s GlobalLink NEXT 2025, an annual gathering of industry leaders, innovators, and peers who are shaping the future of global content, AI, and digital communication. For Mercari, this was our first time attending the event — and what an inspiring debut it was. The day was a celebration of ideas, collaboration, and innovation. It brought together experts and practitioners who share a common vision: to make communication seamless across languages, cultures, and technologies. The conference was filled with insightful talks and meaningful conversations that reflected just how quickly the worlds of translation, localization, and AI are converging to redefine how we connect globally. A Day of Innovation and Insight GlobalLink NEXT 2025 brought together an impressive lineup of speakers from organizations such as Adobe, Mitsubishi Electric, Medpace, and Japan Aviation Electronics (JAE). Each session was a deep dive into how global companies are managing multilingual content, leveraging AI to enhance search and personalization, and driving scalable digital transformation strategies. The discussions ranged from the use of Generative AI in translation workflows, to AI-powered website deployment and real-time AI interpreting solutions that are redefining cross-border collaboration. It was fascinating to see how diverse industries – from life sciences to manufacturing to tech, are embracing these tools while staying focused on quality, context, and cultural authenticity. What stood out most was the balance between automation and empathy. The event emphasized that while technology can accelerate translation and communication, the heart of true connection still lies in human understanding – a philosophy that resonates deeply with Mercari’s mission of enabling effortless exchange and belonging. Conversations That Connect Beyond the sessions, the event also created space for meaningful networking throughout the day. Over coffee breaks and informal chats, I had the chance to… <a class="more-link" href="https://about.in.mercari.com/uncategorized/globallink-next-2025/">Continue reading Building Connections Beyond Language: Mercari at TransPerfect’s GlobalLink NEXT 2025</a>

September 24, 2025

All that happened at the Cypher AI Conference 2025

At Mercari India, continuous learning isn’t a box to check – it’s part of how we grow. Recently, our team had the opportunity to attend Cypher AI 2025, one of India’s largest and most forward-looking conferences on artificial intelligence. Across keynotes, panels, debates, and booth interactions, one thing was clear: AI is no longer just a technical revolution, it’s a human one. One standout session, “Upskilling for an AI Future – Blending Tech Prowess with Human-Centric Skills,” delivered by a senior engineering leader at LinkedIn, reframed how we think about growth. The message was bold: in the AI era, degrees are good, but dynamic skills are essential. The future will reward those who stay curious, adaptable, and committed to learning. It also reminded us that while AI and data skills are in high demand, they need to be paired with empathy, creativity, and communication to create meaningful impact. As India rapidly approaches 70% AI adoption, the stakes and opportunities are higher than ever. A thought-provoking debate titled “Generative AI and Knowledge Work – Job Enabler or Disruptor?” sparked lively discussion and sharp insights from CXO-level leaders. The key takeaway was that the shift to an AI-native organization is not about replacing people, but about transforming how work gets done, with AI as a collaborator, not a competitor. Several technical deep dives throughout the day pushed our understanding even further. In a session titled “Co-Intelligence = IA to the Power of AI” by Tredence’s Soumendra Mohanty, we explored how to design “ambidextrous” AI systems that embrace both structure and creativity. He emphasized the need to build for ambiguity and incorporate human-in-the-loop oversight. His framework broke down GenAI integration across workflows like content creation, customer engagement, and data insights, using specialized agents to simulate real-world roles with precision.… <a class="more-link" href="https://about.in.mercari.com/news/all-that-happened-at-the-cypher-ai-conference-2025/">Continue reading All that happened at the Cypher AI Conference 2025</a>

August 19, 2025

Migrating Coupons from Monolith to Microservice

Our JourneyBackground: The Heart of Our Platform Coupons are central to our platform, driving user engagement and retention through credit points and discounts. Historically, this critical system resided within our extensive PHP monolith, deeply integrated with almost all major modules like accounting, payment processing, checkout, listings, and item management. While this architecture initially facilitated rapid iteration, its limitations became apparent as our product and team grew. Why We Decided to Migrate The coupon domain’s deep entanglement with critical modules increasingly hampered agility and introduced operational risks. As some parts of our system transitioned to microservices while others remained in the monolith, complexity mounted. Our key motivations for this migration included: Technical Debt: The monolith’s increasing complexity hindered development and heightened regression risks. Scalability: Coupon processing needed to accommodate a growing user base and higher loads. Reliability and Ownership: We needed clearer data ownership boundaries and a straightforward path for performance optimization. What This Blog Post Covers In this post, I will detail the approach we adopted for migrating our coupon system to a robust, scalable microservice, including our methodology, the challenges we encountered, and the lessons we learned.The Challenges Migrating a critical domain like coupons involves more than just moving code. Here’s what made this journey particularly complex: Tight Coupling: The coupon domain’s pervasive connections to accounting, payments, listing, and item screens meant that moving one piece affected many others. Always-On Expectations: Our services needed to remain continuously available without significant downtime or interruptions. Data Consistency: The migration demanded meticulous management to prevent any coupon, transaction, or reward notification from being missed. Scalability: The new architecture had to match or surpass the original system’s scale. Performance: Achieving the monolith’s native speed despite additional network hops was a significant hurdle. Unclear Ownership: Ambiguities regarding endpoint and database ownership required resolution before… <a class="more-link" href="https://about.in.mercari.com/news/mercari-india/migrating-coupons-from-monolith-to-microservice/">Continue reading Migrating Coupons from Monolith to Microservice</a>

July 9, 2025

Inside The Live2Test 2025: The Premier Online Conference for Software Testing – Udit Gattani

The Live2Test 2025 tech panel explored the rapidly evolving technological landscape of software testing, focusing on the influence of Artificial Intelligence and other breakthrough technologies. The conversation delved into the transformation of traditional testing workflows, the rise of AI-augmented approaches, and the crucial role testers must play in navigating changes across the industry. Amidst the excitement about cutting-edge tools like ChatGPT and blockchain, the panel delivered an honest message: Testers who fail to adapt and embrace these innovations will risk falling behind. More than ever, testers are expected to graduate from repetitive tasks to high-level problem-solving, risk assessment, and strategic thinking. Key Takeaways 1. The Tester’s Role is Transforming The iconic manual tester role is rapidly becoming outdated. While this doesn’t mean testers are being replaced, their roles are undeniably evolving. Testers must now think beyond execution and focus on bigger-picture responsibilities, such as risk profiling, evaluating AI model behavior, and designing prompts for AI systems. These emergent skills are what will define the future of testing, leaving behind the “button-clicker” mindset of the past. 2. AI is Just a Tool, Not a Cure-All AI’s ability to accelerate and automate aspects of testing is undeniable, but it’s neither magic nor a one-size-fits-all solution. Tools like ChatGPT, AI-based test case generators, and coding copilots are only as effective as the humans directing them. Over-reliance on these tools—without proper judgment—can result in flawed test cases, defective releases, and even security risks. 3. Upskilling in AI is Non-Negotiable As AI becomes a critical part of software development and testing cycles, training in AI concepts is no longer a “nice-to-have.” Organizations must empower their teams with skills in AI fundamentals, risk detection, prompt engineering, and ethical usage guidelines to keep pace with industry demands. A highly trained, AI-capable team will also help ensure that… <a class="more-link" href="https://about.in.mercari.com/news/mercari-india/inside-the-live2test-2025-the-premier-online-conference-for-software-testing-udit-gattani/">Continue reading Inside The Live2Test 2025: The Premier Online Conference for Software Testing – Udit Gattani</a>

July 3, 2025

A Day of Purpose: A Heartfelt CSR Visit by Mercari India

There are experiences that go beyond words, quietly humbling, deeply moving, and filled with perspective. Our recent visit to Thayi Mane- Children’s home in Bangalore, was one such moment for the Mercari India team. Thayi Mane provides a nurturing environment for children who are either orphaned or come from families unable to support them. The home not only takes care of their education but also focuses on their discipline, values, and emotional well-being. It is a space built on structure, compassion, and hope. Our visit began post-school hours, as we waited for the children to return from their classes around 3:30 PM. The visit was centered around spending quality time with the children and engaging them in a creative activity. We distributed drawing charts, sketch pens, and colours, encouraging each child to express their imagination freely. What followed was a vibrant, uninhibited display of creativity that gave us a glimpse into their unique thoughts and dreams. As the activity came to an end, we gathered for evening snacks, which were sponsored by Mercari India. Sitting together in a shared space, we exchanged stories, smiles, and conversations that reminded us how powerful simple moments can be. This visit was a heartfelt reminder that real impact doesn’t always come from grand gestures, but from showing up with sincerity and being present. Spending time with the children at Thayi Mane left a lasting impression on all of us, and reinforced our commitment to building meaningful connections with the community around us. -Smriti Singhal Stay tuned for more stories, lessons, and reflections as we continue to learn and grow together. Follow us on LinkedIn Twitter Facebook Instagram Youtube

July 1, 2025

Learning, Networking, and Showcasing at Kubernetes Community Days Bengaluru 2025

On June 7, 2025, Bengaluru played host to one of the most exciting events of the year for anyone passionate about Kubernetes and cloud-native technologies—Kubernetes Community Days Bengaluru 2025 (KCD Bengaluru 2025). Held at the Radisson Blu, Outer Ring Road, the event brought together a diverse mix of developers, DevOps engineers, cloud architects, and open-source contributors. It was a day filled with insightful sessions, inspiring keynotes, and the opportunity to connect with the vibrant Kubernetes community. For me and my colleagues from TnS India, attending KCD Bengaluru 2025 was an unforgettable experience. We were thrilled to immerse ourselves in a day dedicated to learning more about Kubernetes best practices, tools, innovations, and the challenges being tackled by the global cloud-native community. The event not only helped us deepen our understanding of Kubernetes but also gave us the chance to share Mercari’s journey and connect with professionals who are just as excited about cloud-native technology as we are. Kickoff With Inspiring Keynotes The event opened with a warm welcome from Humble Devassy Chirammal, Principal Engineer at VMware and a well-known Kubernetes maintainer. His emphasis on building a collaborative and innovative Kubernetes community set the tone for what turned out to be a truly engaging and thoughtful day. The keynote sessions were some of my favorite moments of the event. Each one highlighted the progress Kubernetes has made so far while giving a glimpse into its future. A few keynotes that stood out: ● Daniel Krook from CNCF shared a deep dive into the evolution of Kubernetes in 10 Years of CNCF and Cloud Native’s Next Decade. His stories about challenges and growth within the community were insightful and relatable. ● Ashish Hanwadikar from Kloudfuse brought observability front and center in his talk, From Prompt to Pod: Observability Across the AI… <a class="more-link" href="https://about.in.mercari.com/news/mercari-india/learning-networking-and-showcasing-at-kubernetes-community-days-bengaluru-2025/">Continue reading Learning, Networking, and Showcasing at Kubernetes Community Days Bengaluru 2025</a>

June 19, 2025

Inside the FIDO Alliance Meetup: 100+ Experts, 50+ Orgs, and Mercari on the Panel, Rooparsh

Event Name: FIDO Alliance India Working Group (FIWG) Member Meetup and Workshop Attendee: Over 100 participants representing 50+ organizations, hosted at the Google Ananta office in Bengaluru. On Friday, 6 June 2025, I had the privilege of attending the FIDO India Working Group (FIWG) meetup as a panelist representing Mercari. The event brought together pioneers, thought leaders, and technologists to discuss the progress and future of FIDO-based authentication. Hosted at the Google Ananta office, the event wasn’t just an exchange of technical insights but also a collaborative space to ideate a passwordless future. The discussions centered around the challenges of traditional authentication mechanisms involving passwords and OTPs and how FIDO’s innovative framework can streamline authentication while bolstering security. The event saw impressive contributions from companies like Google, Zoho, Times Internet, Mastercard, and VinCSS, further showcasing how FIDO standards are being applied to a wide array of industries, including IoT.With over 100 participants from 50+ organizations, the energy was palpable, enhanced by Google’s cutting-edge venue and delightful food. Key Takeaways: Transitioning to Passkeys: Times Internet shared their hands-on journey of migrating from passwords to passkeys, highlighting technical obstacles as well as their solutions to make user adoption seamless. Hearing about their significant improvements in both user experience and security was an important learning experience for all. Zoho’s Impactful Solutions: Zoho presented their FIDO-compliant solutions, which are aiding numerous IT companies in enhancing authentication experiences. Their insights showcased how FIDO standards can deliver both security and usability in enterprise settings. Mastercard & RBI Collaboration: Mastercard unveiled their ambitious plans to roll out passkey authentication solutions in partnership with the Reserve Bank of India (RBI). The room was buzzing with excitement over how these upcoming changes could transform authentication systems in India, particularly in the financial sector. IoT with Passkeys (VinCSS): A standout… <a class="more-link" href="https://about.in.mercari.com/uncategorized/inside-the-fido-alliance-meetup-100-experts-50-orgs-and-mercari-on-the-panel-rooparsh/">Continue reading Inside the FIDO Alliance Meetup: 100+ Experts, 50+ Orgs, and Mercari on the Panel, Rooparsh</a>

June 17, 2025

Two Sides of the Desk: An Intern-Mentor Journey ft. Smriti and Jesuine at Mercari India

Welcome to Two Sides of the Desk, a blog series where we share the unique experiences, challenges, and triumphs of interns and their mentors. This blog explores the dynamic relationship between mentor and mentee, offering insights from both sides of the desk. Whether you’re a seasoned mentor, a budding intern, or simply curious about the mentorship journey, our stories and reflections aim to inspire, educate, and foster a deeper understanding of this transformative partnership. Mentor: Smriti Singhal Designation: HR- Mercari India How do you approach balancing guidance and autonomy for your interns to ensure they’re both learning and contributing meaningfully to projects? My approach has always been to create a balance between structure and space. I made sure she had clarity on expectations, but I didn’t micromanage. I allowed her to explore, make mistakes, and come back with questions even if it was the same question twice. I believe real learning happens when someone feels safe enough to try, fail, and ask again. That space helped her grow, and over time, she not only delivered with consistency and confidence, but also began taking full ownership of her work with remarkable attention to detail and accountability At the same time, I also make it clear that the freedom I offer shouldn’t be taken for granted. With autonomy comes responsibility. I try to instill that balance of being self-driven but also accountable so she understands that trust is something we build and maintain together. The goal for me is always to make someone confident in their own voice, not just efficient in a task. Can you provide an example of a particularly challenging situation you’ve encountered while mentoring an intern, and how you navigated it to ensure their growth and success? When Jesuine first joined, she came across as quite introverted and found… <a class="more-link" href="https://about.in.mercari.com/uncategorized/two-sides-of-a-desk/">Continue reading Two Sides of the Desk: An Intern-Mentor Journey ft. Smriti and Jesuine at Mercari India</a>

June 4, 2025

From DNS Failures to Resilience: How NodeLocal DNSCache Saved the Day, Sanu Satyadarshi

I am Sanu Satyadarshi, part of the Platform Engineering division at Mercari, Inc. Platform Engineering provides a cost-effective, safe, and easy-to-use multi-cloud infrastructure service for all engineering teams to make and scale bets. This article discusses the DNS-related challenges encountered at Mercari on our Kubernetes clusters and the significant improvements achieved by implementing Node-Local DNS Cache. By optimizing DNS traffic and reducing errors, we enhanced system reliability and scalability, preventing production outages caused by DNS failures. Key Takeaways Reduced DNS calls to kube-dns by 10x, decreasing network overhead and inter-service communication costs. Lowered DNS query rates by 93% for services on the cluster. Achieved a 10x-100x reduction in DNS-level errors, improving system resilience. Eliminated the “failed to refresh DNS cache” errors, mitigating a frequent source of incidents. DNS on Kubernetes: The Elephant in the Room Domain Name System, more commonly known as DNS an extremely critical component in the internet infrastructure. This is the tech that allows your web browser to find the actual IP address of a website when you type example.com in your browser. DNS in itself is a highly complex topic, and understanding it requires a book(or two) on its own. Like any network infrastructure, Kubernetes depends on DNS to resolve service names like [service name].[namespace].svc.cluster.local and other names to IPs and allows communications among services and the external world. From the role of DNS in Kubernetes, you can imagine that any DNS failure or degradation can quickly escalate to increased latency, network congestion, and even complete outages. On Kubernetes, DNS is installed as a kube-dns deployment running on the kube-system namespace. Specifically at Mercari, it comes pre-installed with our managed GKE clusters for service discovery and name resolution across the clusters. kube-dns on Kubernetes allows multiple configurations using the configmap that can be used to change various parameters like ndots, etc. As kube-dns is responsible for resolving all… <a class="more-link" href="https://about.in.mercari.com/news/mercari-india/from-dns-failures-to-resilience-how-nodelocal-dnscache-saved-the-day-sanu-satyadarshi/">Continue reading From DNS Failures to Resilience: How NodeLocal DNSCache Saved the Day, Sanu Satyadarshi</a>

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