Forward-Deployed Engineer
Location: San Jose, CA or New York City
Remote: Considered; travel required (as per customer requirements)
About Tessera Labs
Tessera Labs is redefining how enterprises adopt and operationalize Artificial Intelligence. Backed by Foundation Capital and led by a world-class founding team, we build multi-agent AI systems that automate complex business workflows across platforms such as SAP, Salesforce, Workday, Snowflake, MuleSoft, and more.
Our mission is to bring real AI automation to the enterprise — with speed, precision, and measurable impact. We move fast, operate with extreme ownership, and build at the frontier of applied AI.
Role Summary
The Forward-Deployed Engineer (FDE) is a hybrid engineering and customer-facing role at the core of how Tessera delivers value. FDEs own the end-to-end lifecycle of customer deployments, from discovery and architecture design to hands-on implementation and production rollout.
You will work directly with customer teams to understand their systems and workflows, design AI-driven solutions, write and debug production code, and deploy multi-agent AI systems into complex enterprise environments. This role is ideal for engineers who enjoy ambiguity, thrive in high-ownership environments, and want to operate at the intersection of AI, engineering, and enterprise transformation.
Why This Role Matters
Forward-Deployed Engineers at Tessera sit on the front lines of enterprise AI adoption. You will work with some of the most complex organizations in the world to deploy AI systems that drive real business outcomes — not demos or proofs of concept.
This role offers deep technical ownership, exposure to executive stakeholders, and a direct line of influence on Tessera’s product roadmap. If you want to see your work in production quickly and shape how AI is actually used inside large enterprises, this role is for you.
Key Responsibilities
Client-Facing Architecture & Solution Design
Lead discovery sessions to understand customer system landscapes, requirements, and constraints
Translate complex business processes into structured technical architectures using multi-agent AI, LLMs, and orchestration frameworks
Clearly communicate solutions to both technical and non-technical stakeholders
Design and articulate end-to-end architectures in real time during customer conversations
Applied AI Engineering & Technical Implementation
Build, review, and debug code for AI-driven workflows, integrations, and agent orchestration
Integrate AI components with enterprise systems, considering scalability, performance, observability, and governance
Execute hands-on implementation and deployment tasks with incomplete or evolving requirements
Diagnose and resolve production issues in customer environments
Deployment, Integration & Customer Success
Deploy and configure Tessera’s AI agents in complex enterprise environments
Serve as the primary technical point of contact during onboarding, implementation, and early adoption
Collaborate with Product, Engineering, and Architecture teams to ensure successful outcomes and inform the product roadmap
Startup Mindset & Ownership
Operate effectively in a fast-paced environment with shifting priorities
Take initiative and drive solutions forward with minimal guidance
Travel to customer sites as needed to support deployments and relationship building
Technical Skills
Software Development
Strong coding skills, particularly in Python; familiarity with TypeScript/JavaScript is a plus
Ability to write production-quality, maintainable code and debug complex systems
Enterprise System Integration
Experience with RESTful APIs, event-driven architectures, and backend integrations
Exposure to enterprise systems such as SAP, Salesforce, Workday, Snowflake, or similar platforms
Hands-on experience connecting AI-driven workflows to enterprise applications
Applied AI & Agent-Based Systems
Understanding of large language models (LLMs), AI orchestration, and multi-agent architectures
Ability to design and deploy AI-driven systems that operate autonomously within enterprise workflows
Cloud & Infrastructure
Familiarity with cloud environments (AWS, GCP, or Azure)
Awareness of observability, monitoring, and logging frameworks for production systems
Required Qualifications
5+ years of experience in software engineering or technical consulting, including at least 2 years in customer-facing roles
Prior experience in roles such as Forward-Deployed Engineer, or Implementation Consultant
Led at least one end-to-end, customer-facing technical implementation from discovery through deployment (or a team member of two similar implementations)
Ability to clearly communicate complex technical concepts to both technical and non-technical stakeholders
Comfortable operating under ambiguity and managing multiple, competing priorities
Experience with enterprise workflow automation, systems integration, or backend integrations
Experience designing, reviewing, or contributing to technical architectures
Willingness to travel to customer sites, primarily within the U.S