The forward deployed engineer model

A forward deployed engineer (FDE) is a software engineer who joins a client's team directly and builds a working solution inside their world: their data, their tools, their constraints. It's the model Palantir invented for big enterprise deals, and the one Clay and OpenAI now use to win them. Instead of a pitch deck, the prospect gets a working system.

Why proposals lose to prototypes

A proposal is a promise with a price tag. Every vendor in your inbox has one, and you have no way to compare promises except by the confidence of the writing. A working version collapses that whole negotiation: here is the system, using your actual data, solving your actual problem. The question changes from "do we believe them?" to "do we want more of this?", which is a much better question for both sides.

When someone describes a problem to us, our default move is to build the solution rather than write a document about building the solution. It's also a filter that keeps us honest: you can't fake a working system the way you can fake a proposal.

What the engagement looks like

• Fixed-scope sprints, 2–12 weeks. A defined outcome and a fixed price ($1.5K–$25K typical), quoted within 48 hours of understanding the problem. Not a range, not "it depends."
• Embedded, not outsourced. Your Slack, your code, daily written updates. The big technical decisions get made in the moment with full context, not in a weekly status meeting.
• Working software as the deliverable. The sprint ends with a system your team can actually use, not a slide deck describing one.
• Full handover. Code, accounts, hosting, documentation. Fire us the day after and nothing breaks.

FDE vs. contractor vs. consultant

A consultant advises and leaves. A contractor builds exactly what you wrote down, and you had to write it down yourself. An FDE closes the loop: they carry the judgment of the consultant and the keyboard of the contractor, so the plan, the decisions, and the building all stay in one head. For founders without a technical team, that last part is the whole value. You don't have anyone to translate between an advisor and a builder.

The short version: the FDE model replaces the sales pitch with a working system. Describe the problem to us (who the user is, what done looks like) and we'll come back with a fixed-price sprint proposal in 48 hours. Start here.