Good Morning [%first_name |Dear Reader%],

Last week, we asked for your help to tell the next big story on careers and workplaces. Over 200 of you took the time out to send in honest and insightful responses. 

A big thank you for completing our survey amidst your year-end commitments. Some of you have already heard from us, and we are carefully reviewing every response!

When asked what stories you wanted to hear on 90,000 Hours, 25% of you said you were interested in how roles and functions are being reimagined. 

This week’s episode covers exactly that (at least in one sphere). 

If you work in tech or follow AI, you’ve likely seen a job listing for a Forward Deployed Engineer (FDE) in the past year. The title is everywhere — and on every tech executive’s lips. Venture capital firm a16z called it the “hottest” role in tech. Salesforce has said this role can “make or break your AI agent launch”. OpenAI started hiring for its FDE team early last year, aiming to grow it to 50 by the end  of 2025. Anthropic is also doubling down, increasing its applied AI team, which includes FDEs and product engineers. 

Job-search platform Indeed estimates that global monthly job listings for FDEs increased more than 800% between January and September last year.

What’s driving this demand? The unique blend of skills the role requires. Beyond adept coding, this role demands that the engineer work directly with customers, bridging client needs and internal teams. They translate client challenges and help AI companies deploy and improve their products.  

Prakash Balasubramanian, executive vice-president of engineering at AI-first engineering services firm Ascendion and a guest on the episode, says they are the “first line of defense,” tasked with “discovering the client’s challenges”. 

While similar roles have long existed, the FDE model was popularised by American data analytics firm Palantir. The firm calls these specialised software engineers “deltas” and embeds them directly on client sites. “One customer, many capabilities” is the function of a delta according to Palantir, while other software engineers or devs focus on “one capability, many customers”

Here is how a Palantir delta described the day-to-day job of an FDE in a company blog: 

A growing number of AI companies are emerging daily. Models and agents have been built. But how do they scale their adoption and make them viable in enterprises where teams might not be technically adept? 

Enter the FDE. The link who brings tech chops, people skills, and product thinking to the table.  

Many AI startups are now ditching traditional sales teams in favour of this role, which offers a versatile range of skills. 

For Maitreya Wagh, co-founder of voice AI startup Bolna (Y Combinator, Fall 2025), this model has really helped create “stickiness” with clients. 

So, now he has a team of 20—eight of which are FDEs. They deal with 70 companies, ranging from beverage brands to banks, all adopting AI bots in multiple Indian languages. 

Bolna is just one example. Other startups are on a hiring spree as well. Four FDEs I spoke to in India confirmed they have received offers via Linkedin. All within the last six months. One of them who works at a fast-growing AI assistant startup told me he has received seven offers from other AI startups looking to hire. 

The race is on. 

Tune in to our latest episode to hear how this race is playing out and how FDEs see their roles evolving in the future. 

If you are a software engineer listening to this, would you want to make the switch and become an FDE? 

Even if you aren’t, I also want to hear from you: how are roles changing in your team? 

Write to me at [email protected]. I am all ears. 

Best,
Vidhatri

Get a premium subscription to The Ken

Unrivaled analysis and powerful stories about businesses from award-winning journalists. Read by 5,00,000+ subscribers globally who want to be prepared for what comes next.

Upgrade Now

Trusted by 5,00,000+ executives & leaders from the world's most successful organisations & students at top post-graduate campuses