ABOUT THE ROLE
We're hiring a Senior Forward Deployed Engineer to work directly with frontier AI labs to solve their most complex engineering challenges.
As a Senior Forward Deployed Engineer, you'll own the end-to-end lifecycle of customer deployments—from understanding technical requirements to architecting, building, and scaling production systems that improve customer workflows and model performance. You'll operate across the stack, partnering closely with Engineering, Research, Product, and Operations teams in both India and the US to deliver solutions for our most strategic customers.
This is a unique opportunity to combine deep software engineering with customer partnership, helping shape how Handshake AI delivers solutions to the world's leading AI labs.
Location: Bengaluru, India. This is an in-office role.
WHAT YOU'LL DO
Partner directly with frontier AI labs to understand complex technical challenges and translate them into scalable engineering solutions
Partner closely with Engineering, Research, Product, and Operations teams in the US to execute against a shared roadmap
Design, build, and deploy production-grade applications that solve high-impact customer problems
Own technical architecture for customer deployments with a focus on reliability, scalability, security, and maintainability
Rapidly prototype, test, and iterate on solutions based on customer feedback
Build reusable tools, frameworks, and deployment patterns that improve delivery across customer engagements
Mentor engineers through technical leadership, code reviews, and engineering best practices
Help establish a strong engineering culture as we continue building our India engineering organization
WHAT WE'RE LOOKING FOR
6+ years of professional software engineering experience
Experience leading technically complex customer-facing, solutions engineering, or forward deployed engineering projects
Strong proficiency with TypeScript, React, and modern backend architectures
Deep understanding of relational databases (e.g., PostgreSQL), system design, distributed systems, and cloud infrastructure
Experience building and operating production systems on AWS or GCP
Strong technical judgment and the ability to solve complex engineering problems in fast-moving, ambiguous environments
Excellent communication and stakeholder management skills
Experience collaborating effectively with globally distributed engineering teams, including teams based in the US
NICE TO HAVE
Experience building AI-powered products, LLM infrastructure, or machine learning platforms
Experience working directly with enterprise customers or strategic technical partners
Familiarity with Docker, Kubernetes, and CI/CD pipelines
Experience supporting applied AI or ML research teams
Experience working in a fast-growing startup or high-growth engineering organization
WHAT SUCCESS LOOKS LIKE
Customer deployments launch successfully and deliver measurable value
Technical solutions become reusable across multiple customer engagements
Deployments are reliable, scalable, and easy to maintain
Customer feedback directly informs platform improvements and future product capabilities
You become a trusted technical partner across customers and engineering teams in both India and the US
YOU’LL THRIVE HERE IF YOU
Are motivated by solving operational problems that have direct, measurable impact.
Want to be part of a company shaping the future of AI through human data.
Can navigate ambiguity, act with urgency, and keep multiple workstreams moving in parallel.
Perks
Generous Equity Grant vested over 4 years
Housing Bonus: 1.3 Lakhs spread throughout the first year
Well Defined Performance Bonus ranging between 10 - 100% of base
Medical Insurance Coverage
Food credit for every in person day.
