- The Seattle FDE roles in this list run end-to-end production deployments for strategic customers, on a hybrid schedule with substantial travel.
- The Bay Area list mixes on-site enterprise AI work with roles remote across the US and Canada.
- The comparison is about the work and the arrangement, not the two metros.
- Compare the posted ranges on the Seattle salary page and the Bay Area salary page.
What each posting asks for
OpenAI's Seattle FDE role covers end-to-end production deployments of frontier models for strategic customers: discovery, technical scoping, system design, implementation, rollout, adoption and delivery trade-offs. It asks for production frontend and backend coding, experience with LLM or generative-model systems, and Seattle-based hybrid work with three office days a week.
11x's FDE role describes full-stack systems for AI voice agents, agent orchestration, APIs, data flows and production operation, remote across the US and Canada with an in-office option in San Francisco. Handshake's senior enterprise-AI role is on-site and focuses on customer workflows, production AI applications, evaluations and reusable deployment practices.
Questions to answer before choosing
Check which metro the employer means, how often you must be in an office, and whether travel is stated as a percentage or left open. Compare the production stage you would own, the customer contact, the required experience and the coding expectations. Ask separately about bonus, equity, benefits, vesting and any location rule the posting leaves unclear.