Times of India | As layoffs across technology industry cross over a lakh, position for this engineering job has gone up 700% AI generated summary, Read the full article for complete information. Technology companies have cut more than a hundred‑thousand jobs in 2026, yet demand for a single engineering role – the forward‑deployed engineer (FDE) – has exploded, with postings rising 729 % from April 2025 to April 2026 and salaries between $170 k and $200 k+. FDEs sit between AI tools and enterprise customers, customizing and integrating AI into workflows and ensuring post‑launch stability; the model was pioneered by Palantir and is now being copied by firms such as Anthropic, OpenAI, Stripe, Google Cloud, QuantumBlack (McKinsey) and others. While layoffs are blamed on AI restructuring, over‑hiring, market share loss, and Meta’s metaverse fallout, hiring FDEs is justified as a critical function for AI rollouts. The take‑away is that despite continued cuts, companies are becoming highly selective, paying top dollar for engineers who can embed AI into Fortune‑500 operations. Read more: https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/technology/tech-news/as-layoffs-across-technology-industry-cross-over-a-lakh-position-for-this-engineering-job-has-gone-up-700/articleshow/131474236.cms #Anthropic #OpenAI #GoogleCloud #Palantir #QuantumBlack #AaronLevie #ThomasKurian