Out of the office and into the client's operations.
An AI engineer deployed to the front line. Echo trains FDEs, certifies them through a completion exam, and connects them with AI projects at Japanese companies.
For: engineers who want to become FDEs, and companies that want to drive AI adoption from within their operations
01/07
Delivering things people can use, not writing proposals.
Forward Deployed Engineer
An AI engineer deployed to the front line
Engineers who work inside the client's operations, not just write code in an office.
They sit alongside the staff, watch the daily workflow, find where AI can take over, then build, deploy and run it on the spot. Instead of writing proposals, they deliver things people can use. The results show up in numbers: how much costs went down, how much efficiency went up, how many people's worth of work hours were freed up.
How the work goes on site
02/07
The skills an FDE needs, each with an example of a project where it is used.
01
Watch the work on site and find the tasks AI can take over.
Example projectSample
“We want someone to look at our day-to-day work and list the tasks AI could take over.”
02
Design how AI connects with existing systems.
Example projectSample
“We want to use AI to search across our internal documents and meeting minutes.”
03
Build AI agents that carry out work on people's behalf.
Example projectSample
“We want an AI agent to handle the first response to inquiry emails.”
04
Write fast, reliable code together with AI.
Example projectSample
“We want to add AI-assisted data entry to our existing business system.”
05
Use AI to take a video from planning to the finished cut.
Example projectSample
“We want to keep producing short product videos with AI.”
06
Redesign workflows and show the change in cost and work hours in numbers.
Example projectSample
“We want to use AI to cut the manual work in our internal request and approval process.”
These examples are sample projects posted on the Project board. See the Project board
03/07
How much costs went down, how much efficiency went up, how many people's worth of work hours were freed up.
Existing company workflow A
30 people · 30 days · ¥10 million+
Improved workflow
9 people · 10 days · ¥3 million
Headcount
Days
Cost
AI takes over 70% of the work
These figures are examples for illustration. Actual results vary with the work involved.
1 FDE
1.5 months
-30%
Monthly cost reduction
What we did: [Details of the work]
04/07
99.7%
Share of small and medium-sized businesses among all companies in Japan (Small and Medium Enterprise Agency)
Source: Small and Medium Enterprise Agency (a Japanese government agency), “Number of Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises and Micro Businesses (as of June 2021): Tabulated Results”
Small and medium-sized businesses are where FDEs are needed most.
Companies know they should use AI, but they don't know where to start. People who understand the technology don't know the business, and people who know the business don't understand the technology. No one has been standing in between. The FDE is that person.
05/07
Learn, pass the exam, and move on to real projects.
01
Learn step by step, from using AI models and building agents to rolling AI out in companies. 30 places.
See the schedule02
You are certified only once you pass.
03
As a full member, you qualify to take on projects and move up in rank.
Growth map04
You get priority on projects for which Echo has set out the requirements and acceptance criteria. Your track record counts toward moving up in rank.
06/07
07/07
An FDE works inside your operations and gives hands-on support: studying the workflow, finding the tasks AI can take over, and building and running it on the spot. Contract terms are agreed case by case.
Want to become an FDE? We're recruiting.
2 months and 16 sessions of training, a completion exam, and then AI projects at Japanese companies.
