Forward Deployed Engineer
Pipeline: 1 candidate active
Openings: 20 (largest active hiring initiative)
Location: New York City, NY (In-Person)
Salary: $180,000 Base
Variable Compensation: Uncapped quarterly bonus tied directly to shipped work (Top performers earn an additional $60,000–$80,000+ per quarter)
Equity: Competitive Equity
Delivery Partner Payout: 17% of first-year salary ($30,600)
Employment Type: Full-Time
Visa Sponsorship: H-1B Available
About the Company
This fast-growing AI consulting company embeds elite engineering teams directly into Fortune 500 organizations to help them become AI-native. Engineers work alongside client teams to architect, build, and deploy production AI systems that deliver measurable business outcomes.
The company is a formal implementation partner of Anthropic and OpenAI, collaborating directly with Applied AI teams on enterprise initiatives. It also partners with leading AI companies and has grown from 5 to 40 employees in one year, with plans to reach 80 employees this quarter and 150–200 employees by year-end.
About the Role
Forward Deployed Engineers own technical delivery from architecture through production while working directly with enterprise clients. This is a highly autonomous, client-facing engineering role for builders who thrive in ambiguity and enjoy solving complex business problems using modern software and AI.
What You'll Own
- Design, build, and deploy modern web applications and agentic AI solutions
- Lead technical initiatives from architecture through production
- Partner directly with Fortune 500 clients on business-critical AI initiatives
- Present technical solutions to technical and executive stakeholders
- Operate independently with high ownership and minimal oversight
- Travel to client sites approximately once per month
- Ship production software rapidly in fast-moving environments
RequirementsMust-Have
- 3–8+ years of software engineering experience
- Experience building modern web applications or AI systems
- Client-facing or customer-facing engineering experience
- Experience leading technical initiatives
- High ownership and self-directed execution
- Comfortable operating in ambiguous, fast-paced environments
Preferred
- Founder, Co-Founder, or CTO experience
- Computer Science or Engineering degree
- Early-stage startup experience
- AI consulting experience
- Experience using agentic coding tools
Ideal Backgrounds
- Founding Engineers
- Startup CTOs
- Technical Founders
- Forward Deployed Engineers
- AI Consultants
- Staff or Senior Software Engineers with strong client interaction
- Solutions Engineers with hands-on development experience
Green Flags
- Genuine client-facing engineering experience
- Founder or startup leadership background
- Proven history of independently shipping products
- High-agency engineering mindset
- Fast execution with minimal direction
- Experience building AI products or consulting with enterprise customers
Red Flags
- Career exclusively at large enterprises with limited ownership
- Forward Deployed Engineer title without hands-on engineering
- Strong academic background but limited production delivery
- Low ownership mentality
- Slow-moving enterprise engineering experience
Compensation
- $180,000 guaranteed base salary
- Uncapped quarterly performance bonus tied directly to shipped work
- Typical performers earn an additional $10,000–$15,000 per quarter
- Top performers have earned $60,000–$80,000+ in a single quarter
- Competitive equity opportunity
Benefits & Perks
- Guaranteed base plus uncapped performance compensation
- Competitive equity
- Medical, dental, and vision insurance
- HSA, Healthcare FSA, and commuter benefits
- 100% employer-paid life insurance and AD&D
- 100% employer-paid long-term disability insurance
- Responsible PTO
Interview Process
- Pending Approval
- Recruiter Screen
- Hiring Manager
- Take-Home Assessment
- Systems Design
- Final Culture Interview
- Offer
- Hired
Company Details
- Bootstrapped
- 11–50 Employees
- Industry: AI Consulting
- Founded: 2025
Pay: $180,000.00 - $260,000.00 per year
Benefits:
- 401(k)
- 401(k) matching
- Dental insurance
- Employee assistance program
- Employee discount
- Flexible schedule
- Flexible spending account
- Health insurance
- Health savings account
- Life insurance
- Paid time off
- Parental leave
- Professional development assistance
- Referral program
- Retirement plan
- Tuition reimbursement
- Vision insurance
Work Location: In person
