AI Engineer / Forward Deployed Engineer (AI Engineering)
Role Description
Job Title: AI Engineer / Forward Deployed Engineer (AI Engineering)
Location: Charlotte, NC OR New York City, NY / Northern New Jersey
Work Model: Hybrid (Approximately 10 onsite days per month)
Overview
We are seeking a highly skilled Forward Deployed Engineer (AI Engineering) with 7+ years of software engineering experience and a minimum of 2 years of hands-on experience with Generative AI (GenAI) and Large Language Models (LLMs).
The ideal candidate will play a key role in designing and delivering AI-powered developer productivity solutions, building intelligent AI agents, and integrating advanced AI capabilities into enterprise engineering workflows. This position requires strong technical expertise, excellent problem-solving skills, and the ability to collaborate directly with engineering teams to drive innovation and automation.
Key Responsibilities
- Design, develop, and deploy AI-powered developer productivity solutions.
- Build and implement AI agents using modern agentic frameworks.
- Integrate AI solutions with enterprise platforms and software development tools.
- Develop scalable APIs and applications that support AI-driven workflows.
- Partner closely with engineering teams to identify automation opportunities and improve developer efficiency.
- Leverage GenAI technologies to create innovative solutions for software delivery and operational excellence.
- Contribute to CI/CD pipelines and DevOps processes to ensure seamless deployment and scalability.
Required Qualifications
- 7+ years of professional software engineering experience.
- 2+ years of hands-on experience with Generative AI and Large Language Models (LLMs).
- Experience working with one or more of the following AI platforms: + GitHub Copilot + OpenAI + Azure OpenAI + Claude + Gemini + AWS Bedrock
- Hands-on experience building AI agents using frameworks such as: + LangChain + LangGraph + CrewAI + AutoGen
- Strong programming skills in one or more of the following: + Python + Java + Go + TypeScript + C#
- Experience building REST APIs and scalable enterprise applications.
- Strong understanding of software architecture, cloud-native development, and system integration.
Preferred Qualifications
- Experience integrating AI solutions with: + GitHub + Azure DevOps + Jira + ServiceNow
- Knowledge of CI/CD pipelines and DevOps best practices.
- Experience working directly with engineering and product teams in agile environments.
- Strong communication, collaboration, and stakeholder management skills.
What You'll Bring
- Passion for AI innovation and developer productivity.
- Ability to rapidly prototype and deploy AI-driven solutions.
- Strong analytical and problem-solving skills.
- A collaborative mindset with the ability to influence technical teams and drive adoption of AI technologies.
Experience Required: 7+ Years Overall | 2+ Years in GenAI/LLM Technologies
About Forward Deployed Engineering
Forward Deployed Engineers are embedded directly with customers to build custom solutions, integrate products into existing infrastructure, and bridge the gap between product engineering and customer success. The role combines deep technical skills with the ability to operate in client environments and translate business requirements into working software.
Originally pioneered by Palantir, the FDE model has spread across AI, enterprise SaaS, and cloud infrastructure companies. FDEs write production code, architect integrations, train customer teams, and feed product insights back to the core engineering organization. At companies like OpenAI, Salesforce, and Databricks, FDE teams are treated as elite engineering units that can ship custom solutions in days rather than quarters.
Typical FDE stack: Python, TypeScript, SQL, REST/GraphQL APIs, cloud platforms (AWS/GCP/Azure), and increasingly LLM APIs and AI orchestration frameworks. Strong communication and the ability to context-switch between technical and business conversations are as important as coding ability.
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