Kris Diallo
FDE Coaching

Become the engineer AI can’t replace.

I’m Kris - a Forward Deployed Engineer. I coach SWEs and data scientists into the role OpenAI, Anthropic, and all other AI companies are betting billions on.

Book your FDE path call
Not ready to talk? DM me “FDE” on Instagram and I’ll send you the full 90-day path, free.
Kris Diallo, Forward Deployed Engineer
Sound Familiar?

You’re good. And you’re stuck.

Stuck 01

You watch coding roles shrink.

Every quarter, more of your job gets automated. You know “learn AI” is the answer — but nobody can tell you what that actually means beyond autocomplete.

Stuck 02

You build, but nothing’s deployed.

Side projects, tutorials, maybe a RAG demo. None of it in front of a real user, none of it moving a number a business cares about. Proof is the currency — and you don’t have it yet.

Stuck 03

The role has no map.

FDE postings are everywhere; even the companies hiring admit there are no defined lines around what a good profile looks like. That’s a problem — and an opening for whoever shows up with proof.

800%
growth in FDE job postings, Jan–Sep 2025
$4B+
behind OpenAI’s Deployment Company, May 2026
$1.5B
Anthropic’s FDE joint venture with Blackstone & Goldman
$200–400k+
total comp for FDEs at AI companies
How It Works

Ninety days. One deployed system. Proof in hand.

The engine is the 90-Day FDE Path — free, public, no gate. Coaching is running it with me instead of alone:

Weekly
1:1 working sessions with me. Not a cohort, not a course. Your project, your target companies, your gaps.
Days 1–30
We make AI-native building reflexive and find a real problem in a real business — then you interview the people who feel it.
Days 31–60
Architecture doc, v1 shipped, a real person using it, before-and-after measured.
Days 61–90
Production-hardening, two case studies written like field reports, repositioned resume — and live FDE interview reps with someone who sits in those interviews.

I mine every session for what actually blocks engineers in this transition — so the path gets sharper with every client. Founding clients get me at my hungriest.

Book your FDE path call
Not ready to talk? DM me “FDE” on Instagram and I’ll send you the full 90-day path, free.
Fit

This is not for everyone. On purpose.

For you if:

  • You’re a working SWE or data scientist with 2–6 years of experience.
  • You can already build — what you lack is deployed proof and positioning.
  • You’re willing to talk to real stakeholders and do discovery, not just code.
  • You want judgment work: scoping, architecture, ownership of outcomes.

Not for you if:

  • You’re brand new to programming — build the engineering base first.
  • You want a certificate. Certificates aren’t proof; deployments are.
  • You won’t get on calls with users and stakeholders.
  • You’re looking for passive income or a shortcut past the reps.
Why Me

Every claim on this page is checkable.

I’m not a career coach who read about the role. I’m in the deployments, the stakeholder calls, and the interview loops right now.

Fifth FDE at Cresta
deploying AI agents into real contact centers, daily
Salesforce before that
enterprise software at scale — the seat you’re in now
Turned down a Founding FDE offer
to build this instead — that’s how real the demand is
Brown CS
and a network that still shows up in my DMs

The full story is on the timeline. The full method is in the path — free, because the path was never the hard part. Running it is.

Straight Answers

What people ask before they book.

Do I need a PhD or Palantir on my resume?

No. You need deployed AI projects and the ability to talk to a stakeholder. Both are buildable in weeks — that’s literally what the 90 days are for.

I’m a data scientist, not a SWE. Does this work?

Yes — the path is the same. You already have the build-and-analyze skill; we add discovery, architecture, and deployment. DS backgrounds often interview better on the “improve a metric” framing than SWEs do.

How is this different from a bootcamp or certification?

Certificates teach tools; hiring managers read proof. You leave with a deployed system, measured results, and two case studies — and you’re coached by someone who does the job, not someone who runs a curriculum.

What does it cost?

It’s 1:1 and deliberately small, priced accordingly. We talk specifics on the call — and if I don’t think you’ll get your money’s worth, I’ll tell you straight and point you at the free path instead.

Can you guarantee me a job?

No — and nobody honest can. What I can do is make sure you walk into interviews with more deployed FDE experience than 95% of applicants, and that you interview like someone who’s done the work. Because you will have.

The path is free. The seat is real.

Book 20 minutes: where you are, what’s actually between you and an FDE role, and your 90-day game plan. If coaching makes sense, I’ll show you how it works. If it doesn’t, I’ll tell you straight — and you keep the plan either way.

Book your FDE path call
Not ready to talk? DM me “FDE” on Instagram and I’ll send you the full 90-day path, free.