How AWS Is Embedding AI Engineers Inside Customer Teams

Amazon Web Services is making a bold move in AI with a $1 billion investment. They created a new division called Forward Deployed Engineering, or FDE. This team embeds AI engineers directly inside customer organizations. The goal is simple: speed up AI adoption and build production-ready systems fast.

Instead of remote consulting, AWS will send small teams of five to six engineers to work on-site. Each engagement lasts about 45 days. During that time, these engineers join forces with the client’s business, engineering, and security teams. They develop AI systems tailored specifically to the company’s needs.

Francessca Vasquez, AWS vice president of frontier AI engineering and services, explains, “AWS FDE embeds AWS frontier teams—working with purpose-built agents—directly inside customer teams.” She adds that speed is the currency clients care about most. “We want to make sure that these customers get value in faster durations than what they’ve traditionally seen in project-based activity.”

These engineers are not just any coders. Many helped build AWS’s own AI services. They bring deep expertise and hands-on experience to help clients become AI-native. The approach focuses on shared business outcomes instead of billable hours. Every project aims to deliver AI models, knowledge graphs, detailed documentation, and internal champions who keep the momentum going.

Building AI Systems with Security and Control

FDE teams install a semantic layer inside the customer’s AWS account. This layer connects to enterprise data sources and builds a knowledge graph. It helps structure and understand complex data for AI applications. Security is a top priority. AWS uses hardware-based isolation and end-to-end encryption. Customer data always stays under their control.

This focus on security makes FDE a good fit for industries with strict regulatory and governance rules. Companies that need production-grade AI systems can rely on this model to meet those challenges. AWS also supports the program through partner training and resources to keep it growing strong.

Growth, Partners, and Early Customers

Demand for forward-deployed engineers is booming. AWS expects a 42-fold jump in demand from 2023 to 2025. They plan to staff the new unit with thousands of employees, hiring new talent and moving others internally. This is a big bet amid broader company job cuts. Since October, Amazon has cut over 30,000 corporate jobs.

Before FDE, AWS offered AI engineering support through its Generative AI Innovation Center. It worked on projects with BMW, Jabil, and Lyft. Now, FDE focuses on embedding teams more deeply and delivering faster results. Initial customers for the program include the National Basketball Association and Ricoh.

Just last month, AWS and Kyndryl extended their partnership. Together, they aim to expand agentic AI in enterprise IT settings. These efforts show how AWS wants to transform how businesses adopt AI at scale.

Brian Mitchell, an AWS executive, sums it up: “Customers aren’t asking what AI can do anymore. They’re asking, ‘How do I make it part of my business that actually runs?’” This new FDE division answers that question by putting AI engineers where they’re needed most—right inside the customer’s team.

With AWS’s Q1 revenue hitting $37.6 billion, up 28% year over year, the company is doubling down on AI as a core growth driver. Forward Deployed Engineering may become a key part of how businesses finally turn AI ambitions into reality.