$125,000–$160,000
Forward Deployed Engineer - New Grad (2027)
Updated
$130,000–$158,000Sunnyvale, CAOn-siteJunior
Forward Deployed Engineers own end-to-end delivery of customer projects, deploying and integrating autonomy products into real-world commercial and defense environments.
Find roles that fit you
We find roles for your experience and goals, explain the fit, and help you get introduced to hiring teams.
We never share your profile with employers without your permission.
At a glance
Posted base pay
$130K–$158KBelow the median
Median $188K
This job$130K–$158KTypical senior FDE payMiddle 50% of 1,748 postings$160K–$220KThe work
Builds what the customer runs
Balance
- Mostly building
- Mixed
- Mostly pre-sales or support
Project stages
- Pre-sales (not covered)
- Proof of concept (not covered)
- Implementation
- Operations (not covered)
- Coding
- Writes production code
- Builds for
- External customers
- Level
- Senior
- Role
- Individual contributor
What they ask for
Experience
Tools
Less common in FDE jobs
- Company size: About 1,001–5,000 people17%
- Company stage: Later private32%
- On-site37%
- Individual contributor or manager: Individual contributor50%
Share of US FDE postings that state each fact.
The job description from Applied Intuition
Posted by Applied Intuition on
Applied Intuition, Inc. is powering the future of physical AI. Founded in 2017 and now valued at $15 billion, the Silicon Valley company is creating the digital infrastructure needed to bring intelligence to every moving machine on the planet. Applied Intuition services the automotive, defense, trucking, construction, mining and agriculture industries in three core areas: tools and infrastructure, operating systems, and autonomy. Eighteen of the top 20 global automakers, as well as the United States military and its allies, trust the company’s solutions to deliver physical intelligence. Applied Intuition is headquartered in Sunnyvale, California, with offices in Washington, D.C.; San Diego; Ft. Walton Beach, Florida; Ann Arbor, Michigan; London; Stuttgart; Munich; Stockholm; Bangalore; Seoul; and Tokyo. Learn more at applied.co.
We are an in-office company, and our expectation is that full-time employees primarily work from their Applied Intuition office 5 days a week. However, we also recognize the importance of flexibility and trust our employees to manage their schedules responsibly. This may include occasional remote work, starting the day with morning meetings from home before heading to the office, or leaving earlier when needed to accommodate family commitments. This in-office expectation does not apply to contractor positions
About the Role
Applied Intuition is redefining vehicle intelligence across commercial and defense sectors. As a Forward Deployed Engineer, you'll work in small teams and own end-to-end execution of high-impact projects. You'll be the technical bridge between Applied Intuition's technology and our customers' real-world operational environments.
This role demands both technical depth and operational excellence. You'll work directly with customers to deploy and integrate Applied Intuition's products, while tackling a variety of software engineering, infrastructure, robotics, and systems challenges. You'll have significant ownership over technical and product decisions and work closely with both customers and internal teams to solve difficult problems and deliver impactful solutions.
At Applied Intuition, you will:
- Work directly with customers to deploy and integrate Applied Intuition's products and tools into real-world environments
- Work across our entire stack to develop new products, features, and tools for our customers' autonomy development workflows
- Tackle a variety of software engineering, infrastructure, robotics, and systems challenges
- Have an unparalleled opportunity to work with domain experts across a variety of fields, as well as startup veterans
- Take ownership over technical and product decisions and drive projects from development through deployment
- Collaborate closely with customers, engineers, and product teams to understand problems and deliver effective solutions
- Carve out your own area of expertise and quickly become comfortable with new technical tools and environments
We're looking for someone who has:
- BS/MS degree (completed or in progress) in Computer Science, Computer Engineering, Electrical Engineering, or a related field, graduating December 2026 or Summer 2027
- Proven ability as a self-starter and can quickly become comfortable with new technical tools
- Designed efficient and effective solutions to a wide range of engineering challenges
- Strong programming skills, with proficiency in languages such as C++ or Python
- Experience taking initiative in a fast-paced environment
- Strong communication skills and an interest in working directly with customers to solve technical problems
- 1+ year of experience in any field, or equivalent combination of education and experience
Nice to have:
- Working knowledge of frontend, API layer, database ORM, containerization, or cluster orchestration frameworks (such as React, GraphQL, SQLAlchemy, Docker, or Kubernetes)
- Experience working with simulation tools, modeling physical problems, or using robotics middleware (such as ROS)
- Experience working with complex software systems, infrastructure, robotics, or hardware
- Experience in defense, automotive, robotics, or adjacent industries
Don’t meet every single requirement? If you’re excited about this role but your past experience doesn’t align perfectly with every qualification in the job description, we encourage you to apply anyway. You may be just the right candidate for this or other roles.
Applied Intuition is an equal opportunity employer and federal contractor or subcontractor. Consequently, the parties agree that, as applicable, they will abide by the requirements of 41 CFR 60-1.4(a), 41 CFR 60-300.5(a) and 41 CFR 60-741.5(a) and that these laws are incorporated herein by reference. These regulations prohibit discrimination against qualified individuals based on their status as protected veterans or individuals with disabilities, and prohibit discrimination against all individuals based on their race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or national origin. These regulations require that covered prime contractors and subcontractors take affirmative action to employ and advance in employment individuals without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, protected veteran status or disability. The parties also agree that, as applicable, they will abide by the requirements of Executive Order 13496 (29 CFR Part 471, Appendix A to Subpart A), relating to the notice of employee rights under federal labor laws.
FOR US-BASED ROLES: Applied Intuition is committed to providing an accessible and inclusive application and interview experience to applicants who are disabled veterans and other applicants with disabilities or medical conditions. Reasonable accommodations are available, requesting an accommodation will not affect your candidacy in any way, and you are not required to disclose the nature of your disability or medical condition in order to make a request. If you require an accommodation please contact careers@applied.co. We will work with you!
View posting at Applied Intuition
About Applied Intuition
Builds the toolchain, Vehicle OS and autonomy stacks that automakers, defense and off-road OEMs use to ship AI-driven vehicles.
Private Late · 1000–2000 people
Similar jobs
Avathon (formerly SparkCognition)Builds what the customer runs
Forward Deployed AI Engineer
Pleasanton, CA
$110,000–$180,000
AccordionBuilds what the customer runs
Senior Software Engineer
Boston, MA · Charlotte, NC · +4 moreBoston, MA +5Hybrid
$110,000–$200,000
$155,000–$190,000
Hiring at Applied Intuition and want this page changed or removed? Email info@nextmove.md and we take it down.
Employer postings · How we read postings