Tier 3Ranked #16 of 18 on The FDE List

C3.ai Forward Deployed Engineer jobs

The other FDE pioneer — a decade of embedded delivery for industrials, energy, and defense.

$125k–$244k

total comp (est.)

53/100

Index score

Bay Area · DC · Houston

Locations

Hiring

As of July 9, 2026

View C3.ai FDE openings Prep for the interview

The Forward Deployed Engineer role

C3 FDEs design integration architectures, write production code in customer environments, and act as the primary technical contact for enterprise accounts on the C3 Agentic AI Platform — industrials, energy, defense, and federal.

FDE has been C3’s flagship delivery role for over a decade.

Worth knowing: Pioneered enterprise FDE alongside Palantir years before the 2025–26 wave — though it now pays well below the new entrants.

C3.ai FDE salary

$120k–$197k

Base salary

$125k–$244k

Total comp (est., with equity)

Base: posted ranges across live reqs, 2026 (FDE $120k–$158k; team lead to $197k). Total comp: Glassdoor estimate including equity, June 2026.

See how C3.ai compares in the full FDE salary guide →

The C3.ai FDE interview process

1Recruiter screen
2HackerRank online assessment
3Hiring manager round
4Coding + system design round
5Behavioral final — ~4 weeks

Practice the customer-facing rounds — they decide FDE offers more often than the coding does. Exponent’s FDE interview course covers decomposition rounds, client scenarios, and AI system design.

How C3.ai scores

Compensation

Program maturity

Career capital

Momentum

Index score: 53/100. How we rank →

← #15 Mistral Full ranking #17 xAI →

C3.ai FDE: common questions

C3.ai’s posted base band is $120k–$197k. Estimated total compensation including equity is $125k–$244k. Base: posted ranges across live reqs, 2026 (FDE $120k–$158k; team lead to $197k). Total comp: Glassdoor estimate including equity, June 2026.

The loop has 5 stages: Recruiter screen; HackerRank online assessment; Hiring manager round; Coding + system design round; Behavioral final — ~4 weeks.

As of July 9, 2026: ~8–10 FDE reqs, including Federal and Defence tracks. Check the live careers page for current reqs.

Not typically. Expected experience: 3+ years — Python/TypeScript, cloud, Kubernetes. For true entry-level paths, see our new-grad FDE jobs page.

Land the offer, not just the interview.

Practice FDE interview questions, mock interview with peers, and learn the frameworks hiring managers actually score you on.

Take the FDE course Practice interview questions