> AI agents: this is one page of Nextmove’s FDE site, in Markdown. Nextmove is a job board and free career service for forward deployed engineers (FDEs). Each posting is classified from its text, not its title: the kind of work, how much of it is production code, pre-sales weight, time at customer sites, travel, remote arrangement, level and posted base pay. The site also publishes the aggregates: median pay by level, metro, company and kind of work, and which companies started hiring FDEs each week. Every page under https://nextmove.md/fde is served this way; the index of pages is https://nextmove.md/llms.txt. # FDE jobs that build what the customer runs at early-stage companies Canonical URL: https://nextmove.md/fde/jobs?companyStage=early&role=builds-for-customers 281 forward deployed engineer jobs that build what the customer runs at early-stage companies, from 209 employers. Half of those that post pay offer $166,000 to $235,000. **281** postings · **209** companies · 172 state pay: median **$200,000**, half $166,000–$235,000 Postings read on November 6, 2026 · Updated November 6, 2026 [Wafer](https://nextmove.md/fde/companies/wafer) ### [Member of Technical Staff, Forward Deployed](https://nextmove.md/fde/jobs/92a4f62e58e7827e) San Francisco, CA On-site New · Today Pay not posted [Generalist AI](https://nextmove.md/fde/companies/generalist-ai) ### [Forward Deployed Engineer](https://nextmove.md/fde/jobs/dfe338dad6dac3cb) Somerville, MA On-site New · Yesterday $150,000–$200,000 [Pramaana Labs](https://nextmove.md/fde/companies/pramaana-labs) ### [Forward Deployed Engineer](https://nextmove.md/fde/jobs/f99fed3ab01cfc35) Palo Alto, CA On-site New · Yesterday Pay not posted [Joyful Health](https://nextmove.md/fde/companies/joyful-health) ### [Forward Deployed Engineer](https://nextmove.md/fde/jobs/22795913cd1c6605) New York, NY Hybrid New · 2d ago $150,000–$275,000 [Trase Systems](https://nextmove.md/fde/companies/trase-systems) ### [Forward Deployed Engineer](https://nextmove.md/fde/jobs/15bd77cd9f0f35f4) Seattle, WA · Mclean, VA Remote New · 2d ago $150,000–$240,000 [Generalist AI](https://nextmove.md/fde/companies/generalist-ai) ### [Forward Deployed Engineer](https://nextmove.md/fde/jobs/f13c7e99d08d7c7e) San Mateo, CA On-site New · Yesterday $150,000–$200,000 [Clarasight](https://nextmove.md/fde/companies/clarasight) ### [Forward Deployed Engineer](https://nextmove.md/fde/jobs/2111cdfde3fc14b6) US Remote New · 2d ago Pay not posted [Endeavor](https://nextmove.md/fde/companies/endeavor) ### [Forward Deployed Engineer](https://nextmove.md/fde/jobs/d9b832dd64d37c26) Chicago, IL On-site New · 3d ago $150,000–$180,000 [SpruceID](https://nextmove.md/fde/companies/spruceid) ### [Staff Forward Deployed Software Engineer](https://nextmove.md/fde/jobs/c02a7615ae059b6d) US Remote New · 3d ago Pay not posted [Aurelian](https://nextmove.md/fde/companies/aurelian) ### [Forward Deployed Engineer](https://nextmove.md/fde/jobs/4261eb924e4d3dcb) Seattle, WA On-site New · 3d ago $100,000–$120,000 [ChipAgents](https://nextmove.md/fde/companies/chipagents) ### [Forward Deployed Engineer](https://nextmove.md/fde/jobs/2ff7b7b2f9e8f946) San Jose, CA On-site 7d ago $180,000–$300,000 [H Company](https://nextmove.md/fde/companies/h-company) ### [Founding Forward Deployed Engineer - US](https://nextmove.md/fde/jobs/e2fc21f78f9a6a01) Austin, TX · New York, NY Hybrid 9d ago Pay not posted [SpruceID](https://nextmove.md/fde/companies/spruceid) ### [Senior/Staff Forward-Deployed Engineer (Mobile)](https://nextmove.md/fde/jobs/b0485f9df07b99d3) US Remote New · 3d ago Pay not posted [Medra](https://nextmove.md/fde/companies/medra) ### [Forward Deployed Robotics Engineer](https://nextmove.md/fde/jobs/8d9b4f103b1afb83) San Francisco, CA On-site 9d ago $130,000–$210,000 [Plain](https://nextmove.md/fde/companies/plain) ### [Forward Deployed Engineer](https://nextmove.md/fde/jobs/25449c101b2d1a5a) San Francisco, CA Hybrid 10d ago $180,000–$250,000 [Simple AI](https://nextmove.md/fde/companies/simple-ai) ### [Forward Deployed Engineer](https://nextmove.md/fde/jobs/048b7691c8a2aa85) San Francisco, CA On-site 13d ago $120,000–$200,000 [Sola](https://nextmove.md/fde/companies/sola) ### [Forward Deployed Engineer](https://nextmove.md/fde/jobs/d327c27ab9bc28d6) New York, NY On-site 13d ago $120,000–$200,000 [Titan](https://nextmove.md/fde/companies/titan) ### [Forward Deployed Engineer - Managed AI](https://nextmove.md/fde/jobs/715dbfa9069ee13e) US Remote 13d ago $150,000–$200,000 [Supermove](https://nextmove.md/fde/companies/supermove) ### [Founding Forward Deployed Engineer, AI](https://nextmove.md/fde/jobs/d35e07e253edcc9a) US Remote 2w ago Pay not posted [Uare.ai](https://nextmove.md/fde/companies/uare-ai) ### [Forward Deployed Engineer (U.S. Government / IL5)](https://nextmove.md/fde/jobs/b4730e997dcec701) San Francisco, CA · Los Altos, CA On-site 2w ago $130,000–$170,000 [Prime Intellect](https://nextmove.md/fde/companies/prime-intellect) ### [Applied Researcher - Forward-Deployed RL](https://nextmove.md/fde/jobs/0ed15e783d00992e) San Francisco, CA · New York, NY Remote 2w ago $150,000–$300,000 [Fastino Labs](https://nextmove.md/fde/companies/fastino-labs) ### [Forward Deployed Engineer](https://nextmove.md/fde/jobs/da8fc44ab966dc80) San Francisco, CA Hybrid 2w ago Pay not posted [Nango](https://nextmove.md/fde/companies/nango) ### [Forward Deployed Engineer (Founding)](https://nextmove.md/fde/jobs/928f53873deb8071) US Remote 3w ago $120,000–$200,000 [Manifest OS](https://nextmove.md/fde/companies/manifest-os) ### [Forward Deployed Engineer](https://nextmove.md/fde/jobs/32fe49ebe3886798) New York, NY On-site 3w ago $170,000–$230,000 [Autoscience Institute](https://nextmove.md/fde/companies/autoscience-institute) ### [Forward Deployed Engineer](https://nextmove.md/fde/jobs/a9012b69fa44776f) Menlo Park, CA On-site 3w ago Pay not posted [Titan](https://nextmove.md/fde/companies/titan) ### [Forward Deployed Engineer](https://nextmove.md/fde/jobs/96694cce5cd5c7c7) San Francisco, CA · New York, NY On-site 3w ago $180,000–$480,000 [Alpharun](https://nextmove.md/fde/companies/alpharun) ### [Forward Deployed Engineer](https://nextmove.md/fde/jobs/8d79c46a563b1cd2) San Francisco, CA On-site 3w ago Pay not posted [Perfect Venue](https://nextmove.md/fde/companies/perfect-venue) ### [Forward Deployed Engineer](https://nextmove.md/fde/jobs/06b7cbfa8e3707d4) San Francisco, CA On-site 3w ago $110,000–$140,000 [Aerovy](https://nextmove.md/fde/companies/aerovy) ### [Forward Deployed Engineer (Founding)](https://nextmove.md/fde/jobs/5ed9b7623426bad3) Seattle, WA Hybrid 3w ago $150,000–$200,000 [FriendliAI](https://nextmove.md/fde/companies/friendliai) ### [Forward Deployed Engineer - AI Inference](https://nextmove.md/fde/jobs/2b8a281a5eedea88) San Francisco, CA Hybrid 4w ago Pay not posted [Ascend](https://nextmove.md/fde/companies/ascend) ### [Forward Deployed Engineer](https://nextmove.md/fde/jobs/31b6c47f72c5d05c) San Francisco, CA On-site 4w ago $170,000–$210,000 [OhMD](https://nextmove.md/fde/companies/ohmd) ### [Forward-Deployed Integrations Engineer](https://nextmove.md/fde/jobs/35dda6a7a40c43fc) Burlington, VT Remote 4w ago $154,975–$192,553 [Dryft](https://nextmove.md/fde/companies/dryft) ### [Forward Deployed Engineer - US](https://nextmove.md/fde/jobs/731b4e96e4cfa35f) San Francisco, CA On-site 4w ago Pay not posted [Rune Technologies](https://nextmove.md/fde/companies/rune-technologies) ### [Forward Deployed Engineer](https://nextmove.md/fde/jobs/02ddbd5a959d2529) Seattle, WA On-site 4w ago $190,000–$210,000 [Medeloop](https://nextmove.md/fde/companies/medeloop) ### [Forward Deployed Engineer](https://nextmove.md/fde/jobs/731a29fd03376be6) New York, NY · San Francisco, CA 4w ago Pay not posted [Maxinsights](https://nextmove.md/fde/companies/maxinsights) ### [Forward Deployed Engineer](https://nextmove.md/fde/jobs/fea1f5b4abebab82) Santa Clara, CA On-site 5w ago Pay not posted [webAI](https://nextmove.md/fde/companies/webai) ### [Forward Deployed Engineer - P2P Networking](https://nextmove.md/fde/jobs/4190999d14dd0409) US Remote 5w ago Pay not posted [Method Security](https://nextmove.md/fde/companies/method-security) ### [Forward Deployed Engineer](https://nextmove.md/fde/jobs/20571348fcfcbc3f) New York, NY On-site 5w ago $140,000–$190,000 [Silkline](https://nextmove.md/fde/companies/silkline) ### [Forward Deployed Engineer](https://nextmove.md/fde/jobs/0b66251f9fb73a9b) Seattle, WA · Chicago, IL 6w ago $150,000–$225,000 [Sim](https://nextmove.md/fde/companies/sim) ### [Forward Deployed Engineer](https://nextmove.md/fde/jobs/f40e24220cfe7740) San Francisco, CA On-site 6w ago $190,000–$250,000 All 281 build what the customer runs. [Get new postings like these by email](https://nextmove.md/sign-up?from=%2Ffde%2Fjobs%3FcompanyStage%3Dearly%26role%3Dbuilds-for-customers&placement=alert) New fde jobs that build what the customer runs at early-stage companies go out by email once you have an account and set an alert. [Compare pay across US FDE roles →](https://nextmove.md/fde/salary) ## Frequently asked questions ### What do FDE jobs that build what the customer runs at early-stage companies pay? 172 of 281 postings state a pay range. The median is $200,000, and half of them sit between $166,000 and $235,000, from 132 companies. ### How much experience do FDE jobs that build what the customer runs at early-stage companies require? Of 281 postings, 132 state a minimum number of years, from 105 companies. The most common requirement is 3 to 5 years, in 83 of them. The rest ask for under 3 years (39), 6 to 9 years (8) or 10 or more years (2). ### Which companies are hiring for FDE jobs that build what the customer runs at early-stage companies? These 281 postings come from 209 companies. The employers with the most postings are [Obin AI](https://nextmove.md/fde/companies/obin-ai) (5), [SpruceID](https://nextmove.md/fde/companies/spruceid) (5), [Voltai](https://nextmove.md/fde/companies/voltai) (5), [Blank Metal](https://nextmove.md/fde/companies/blank-metal) (4) and [Brain Co.](https://nextmove.md/fde/companies/brain-co) (4). ### Are FDE jobs that build what the customer runs at early-stage companies remote? 53 postings allow remote work from the US. Another 59 are hybrid and 137 are on-site. The remaining 32 say nothing about arrangement. Travel is mentioned in 112 of the 281 postings. Counted over the 281 postings in this search. Postings read on November 6, 2026. These are the postings Nextmove tracks today, not a market survey. Employer postings · [How we read postings](https://nextmove.md/fde/method) ## Related pages - [FDE and deployment jobs at early-stage companies](https://nextmove.md/fde/jobs?companyStage=early) · 452 jobs - [FDE jobs that build what the customer runs at later-stage private companies](https://nextmove.md/fde/jobs?companyStage=late&role=builds-for-customers) · 501 jobs - [FDE jobs that build what the customer runs at public companies](https://nextmove.md/fde/jobs?companyStage=public&role=builds-for-customers) · 366 jobs - [FDE jobs that build what the customer runs at growth-stage companies](https://nextmove.md/fde/jobs?companyStage=growth&role=builds-for-customers) · 225 jobs - [Every FDE job search](https://nextmove.md/fde/jobs/browse)