> 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. # Staff Software Engineer (Applied AI) Canonical URL: https://nextmove.md/fde/jobs/f561d0a23f932b54 Apple posts a staff FDE role to build for teams inside the company in Cupertino, CA, at $194,600–$293,900 base, above the staff+ FDE median of $225,000 across 388 postings with pay. Staff Software Engineer building applied AI solutions for Apple’s manufacturing systems and operations, serving teams and suppliers involved in designing and producing hardware at scale. Read from the employer’s posting on November 8, 2026. - [Apple](https://nextmove.md/fde/companies/apple) Posted May 7, 2026 by Apple · open on Apple careers as of Nov 8, 2026 **$194,600–$293,900** Cupertino, CA Staff Software Engineer building applied AI solutions for Apple’s manufacturing systems and operations, serving teams and suppliers involved in designing and producing hardware at scale. - [See roles that fit me](https://nextmove.md/sign-up?from=%2Ffde%2Fjobs%2Ff561d0a23f932b54&placement=top) - [View posting at Apple](https://jobs.apple.com/en-us/details/200661242-0836/staff-software-engineer-applied-ai) Free. Upload your resume once, see why each FDE role fits, and get introduced only when you say so. ## At a glance ### Posted base pay $195K–$294K Above the median Midpoint $244K · median $225K This job $195K to $294K. Staff+ FDE postings, 388 postings: the middle 50% of posted pay is $197K to $262K, median $225K. ### The work Builds for teams inside the company Balance **Mostly building** Project stages 1. Pre-sales (not covered) 2. Proof of concept 3. Implementation 4. Operations (not covered) - **Coding**: Writes production code - **Builds for**: Both - **Level**: Staff+ - **Role**: Individual contributor ### What they ask for Experience - **10+ years** senior role working across the entire technology stack with a skilled team - **10+ years** building robust HTTP APIs and backend services Background - **Software engineering** ### Do you meet what the posting states? The posting asks for 10+ years. How many do you have? The posting reads as a staff-level role. What level are you at now? The job is in Cupertino, CA. Could you work there? Which of these have you used in production? Answer each one. Nothing is saved or sent. [What postings ask for, by background →](https://nextmove.md/fde/paths) ## Conditions - **Location**: Cupertino, CA - **Pay**: ## More like this [Google](https://nextmove.md/fde/companies/google) ### [Lead GenAI Forward Deployed Engineer, YouTube GTM Operations](https://nextmove.md/fde/jobs/8847cd3282bb9d75) San Bruno, CA · New York, NY · +1 more 3w ago $186,000–$269,000 [Waymo](https://nextmove.md/fde/companies/waymo) ### [AI Enablement Lead](https://nextmove.md/fde/jobs/c882a164e9bc6d53) Mountain View, CA Hybrid 3mo ago $200,000–$247,000 [Analog Devices](https://nextmove.md/fde/companies/analog-devices) ### [Principal Forward Deployed Engineer, Enterprise AI Productivity](https://nextmove.md/fde/jobs/b3b7fcad5a29fac4) Dallas, TX · San Jose, CA 5w ago $200,000–$275,000 - [Other jobs at Apple (7)](https://nextmove.md/fde/companies/apple) ## What you’ll do - Prototype and productionize LLM-powered solutions for manufacturing systems and operations - Collaborate across organizations and functional roles to solve hardware-production challenges - Design and architect applications used by manufacturing, design, quality, supply chain, and supplier teams - Scale solutions from initial concepts into robust production systems ## What you’ll bring - 10+ years in a senior role working across the entire tech stack - 10+ years building robust HTTP APIs and backend services - Expertise in at least one modern programming language, preferably Go - Experience building solutions that leverage APIs from the latest LLMs ## About Apple Designs and sells iPhone, Mac, iPad, Watch, and Vision Pro plus a $100B+ Services layer (App Store, iCloud, Apple Pay, Music, TV+) atop a 2.5B device installed base. Public · 5000+ people [View posting at Apple](https://jobs.apple.com/en-us/details/200661242-0836/staff-software-engineer-applied-ai) ## Similar jobs [Benchling](https://nextmove.md/fde/companies/benchling) ### [Software Engineer, Tools and Automation](https://nextmove.md/fde/jobs/c4a1efdff7ee042a) San Francisco, CA Hybrid 1mo ago $195,000–$265,000 [Jones Lang LaSalle (JLL)](https://nextmove.md/fde/companies/jones-lang-lasalle-jll) ### [Forward Deployed Engineer](https://nextmove.md/fde/jobs/fd5bdcc3529df2db) San Francisco, CA · Chicago, IL · +1 more On-site 6w ago $150,000–$300,000 [Interface AI](https://nextmove.md/fde/companies/interface-ai) ### [Applied AI Engineer, Business Automation](https://nextmove.md/fde/jobs/414ef0024c84432a) San Francisco, CA On-site 3mo ago $220,000–$260,000 [Block (Square)](https://nextmove.md/fde/companies/block-square) ### [Legal Systems Architect](https://nextmove.md/fde/jobs/4ea311520d8d39a6) San Francisco, CA 3mo ago $145,400–$257,600 [TextNow](https://nextmove.md/fde/companies/textnow) ### [Senior Software Developer, AI](https://nextmove.md/fde/jobs/06e7768cfbe42f86) San Francisco, CA Hybrid 5mo ago $148,700–$298,800 - [Compare staff+ FDE salary ranges](https://nextmove.md/fde/salary/staff) - [Similar jobs in SF Bay Area](https://nextmove.md/fde/jobs?region=sf-bay-area) - [Similar jobs that build for teams inside the company](https://nextmove.md/fde/jobs?role=internal-deployment) Hiring at Apple and want this page changed or removed? Email info@nextmove.md and we take it down. Employer postings · [How we read postings](https://nextmove.md/fde/method)