Bengaluru, Feb 10:Futurense India’s fastest-growing AI skilling company, today announced the launch of FDE Academy, World’s first structured pathway designed to train engineers for Forward Deployed Engineering (FDE), widely recognised as the hottest role in AI globally.
Built by experienced Forward Deployed Engineers and senior AI leaders, FDE Academy marks the first time practitioners who actively deploy AI systems in production environments have come together to define how the role is developed. The Academy establishes a clear, structured pathway for Forward Deployed Engineering, a role that has until now been learned largely through hands-on deployment experience within global AI teams.
Forward Deployed Engineers play a critical role in taking artificial intelligence systems from experimentation to real-world deployment. As organisations across industries move AI into production environments, demand for engineers who can deploy, operate, and own AI systems has grown rapidly. As observed in the industry, hiring for Forward Deployed Engineers has increased by more than 800 percent in the past year, reflecting strong global demand for deployment-ready AI talent.
India produces over 1.5 million engineers annually, yet only a small proportion transition into advanced AI roles that involve real-world deployment and system ownership. At the same time, companies across the United States, Europe, and Southeast Asia are actively hiring engineers capable of deploying AI in production, often for global and remote roles. FDE Academy is designed to bridge this gap by preparing Indian engineers for these international opportunities.
Speaking on the launch, Raghav Gupta, Founder and CEO, Futurense, said,
“Forward Deployed Engineering has emerged as the hottest role in AI globally, yet there was no structured pathway anywhere in the world to prepare engineers for it. FDE Academy is built by practitioners to address this gap and to connect Indian engineering talent with global and remote AI opportunities.”
The FDE Academy delivers a 32-week, practitioner-led program that trains engineers to build, deploy, and manage AI systems in real enterprise conditions. The curriculum focuses on hands-on labs, production-grade tools, and real-world case studies, mirroring how Forward Deployed Engineers operate globally. Learners also gain access to a dedicated community of FDEs and AI practitioners for peer learning and industry exposure. This network further opens pathways to global and remote AI opportunities, supporting long-term career growth.
Backed by Futurense’s ecosystem of 25,000+ trained learners and 60+ enterprise partnerships, FDE Academy prepares engineers for roles including Forward Deployed Engineer, Applied AI Engineer, AI Solutions Engineer, and AI Systems Lead. These roles are increasingly in demand across sectors such as technology, BFSI, healthcare, automotive, and global SaaS.
FDE Academy represents a new category in AI skilling, providing a structured, practitioner-led pathway for one of the most in-demand roles in the global AI workforce.