Founding Forward Deployed Engineer

Continuum Resource Network • Chicago, IL

10d • $200,000 - $250,000 • Onsite

About The Position

The Founding Forward Deployed Engineer will help scale a venture-backed technology company’s Applied AI business across a growing portfolio of eight or more mission-critical vertical SaaS businesses. The role involves building and deploying customized AI-powered software solutions for enterprise B2B clients and helping establish the company’s Forward Deployed Engineering function.

Working directly with customers, company leadership, co-founders, and the Head of AI, the engineer will translate complex operational challenges into production-ready AI workflows and software. The role owns deployments end to end—from discovery and solution design through implementation, production deployment, customer adoption, and ongoing maintenance—and helps turn individual deployments into reusable, productized solutions through shared data models, ontologies, and workflows.

The position is based in or requires relocation to New York City or Chicago, with on-site work five days per week and approximately 50% travel. The stated base salary is $200,000–$250,000 per year, with a competitive equity opportunity.

Requirements

• Approximately 4–6 years of experience in forward deployed engineering, solutions engineering, or other technical customer-facing roles involving software or AI development and deployment for enterprise B2B clients.
• Experience working at a company with a strong Forward Deployed Engineering model, such as Palantir, Scale AI, or a comparable organization.
• Demonstrated ownership of a complete technical deployment, from initial zero-to-one development through customer adoption and post-deployment maintenance.
• Technical versatility across system architecture, data pipelines, application development, and LLM application patterns.
• Hands-on experience building and deploying AI-powered applications or complex software solutions for enterprise customers.
• Ability to translate ambiguous business problems into technical requirements, system designs, and working solutions.
• Strong communication and stakeholder-management skills, including working directly with senior executives and technical teams.
• Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science, Engineering, or a related technical field, or equivalent technical expertise.
• Based in or willing to relocate to New York City or Chicago, and able to work on-site five days per week.
• Willingness to travel approximately 50% of the time and spend extended periods at customer locations as needed.
• Must already be authorized to work in the United States without requiring visa sponsorship or transfer.

Nice To Haves

• Experience at a top-tier Forward Deployed Engineering organization, such as Palantir, Scale AI, Ode, Brain Co., or a relevant Palantir spinout such as NorthSlope, Distyl AI, or Poetic.
• Experience as a founder or early employee at a startup, particularly a venture-backed or Y Combinator-backed company.
• Experience building shared data models, ontologies, or reusable software platforms across multiple enterprise customers.
• Experience implementing LLM-based applications, AI agents, and production-grade AI workflows.
• Familiarity with vertical SaaS business models and industry-specific software platforms.
• Experience working directly with C-level executives to identify business opportunities and drive technical implementation.
• Experience developing repeatable deployment frameworks that turn bespoke customer solutions into scalable products.

Responsibilities

• Work directly with enterprise customers and senior stakeholders to understand business challenges, identify AI opportunities, and translate requirements into technical specifications.
• Design, develop, and deploy AI workflows and software applications using appropriate LLMs, data pipelines, system architecture, and full-stack engineering.
• Manage the full implementation lifecycle, from discovery and zero-to-one development through production deployment, customer adoption, and ongoing maintenance.
• Spend time on-site with customers, engaging with C-level executives and operational teams to ensure solutions address business needs.
• Build shared ontologies, common data models, and workflows that connect deployments and enable repeatable, productized solutions across vertical SaaS businesses.
• Partner with the co-founders and Head of AI to define priorities, evaluate opportunities, and execute the company’s Applied AI strategy.
• Ensure deployed solutions deliver business value, improve operational workflows, and achieve sustained customer adoption.
• Establish deployment methodologies, technical standards, and customer engagement practices while helping grow the Forward Deployed Engineering team.

Benefits

• Competitive equity opportunity.
• Founding-level ownership and the opportunity to establish and scale the Forward Deployed Engineering function.
• Direct access to leadership and the opportunity to work with the co-founders and Head of AI on technical and business strategy.
• High-impact projects deploying AI solutions across enterprise software businesses and their customers.
• Influence over reusable AI infrastructure, deployment frameworks, and productized solutions across industries.
• Career growth through broad technical, customer-facing, and strategic responsibilities in a rapidly growing Applied AI business.

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Senior