Free courses, books and talks.
Start with Claude Code for Forward Deployed Engineering: four recorded sessions, free. Then the Architect Track, the books and talks from people who do this work.
Free courses
One free account opens both
Claude Code for Forward Deployed Engineering
Four recorded sessions with Hamza Farooq and Aishwarya Ashok on building AI agents with Claude Code.
Start freeClaude Code for FDE: Architect Track
Prepare for Anthropic’s Claude Certified Architect exam, with sample questions and a study plan.
Start freeBoth come with Moment Search: ask a question, and it plays the exact second of class that answers it.
Books
One free now, one on the way
Claude Code: A Practitioner’s Approach
How product builders use Claude Code to ship faster, from a first MVP to sub-agents chained into one command.
Read it freeForward Deployed Engineering: The Production Gap
The book on the job itself, from the real problem and its success metric to evals and the conversation with the customer.
Hear when it’s outFree talks
All sessions on Maven- FDE Build Series: Demo to ProductionTalks on YouTube with GK, Abi Aryan, Elie Bassil and Trey GraingerWatch the series
- Live, Wed 4 NovObservability and Evals for Enterprise AI SystemsAishwarya AshokSave a spot
- Forward Deployed Engineering MasterclassPriyanka Vergadia, MicrosoftWatch
- Spec Engineering for FDEsGayathri Keerthana, former AmazonWatch
- Context Engineering for Forward Deployed EngineersRavi Mehta, former CPO, TinderWatch
- AI System Design for Full Stack DevelopersAishwarya AshokWatch
- The Frontier of Retrieval EngineeringTrey Grainger, author of AI-Powered SearchWatch
- Knowledge Graphs and GraphRAG for Enterprise AIBenjamin Squire, Neo4jWatch
- Pilot to Production: What Happens When You Scale AgentsAbi AryanGet the recording
Understand the role
All guides- What is a forward deployed engineer?What is a forward deployed engineer? The FDE meaning, what the work looks like week to week, who hires them and what they're paid, from live board data.Read
- How much do forward deployed engineers make?Forward deployed engineer salary by level, from 462 US listings that post pay, plus where the roles are, who hires most and the skills they ask for.Read
- FDE vs solutions engineer vs ML engineer: what's the difference?FDE vs solutions engineer vs ML engineer: when each works in the deal, what they ship, what the interview tests, and how to spot each in a job posting.Read
- How to read a forward deployed engineer job postingHow to read a forward deployed engineer job posting: the signs of real FDE work, the red flags for pre-sales roles, and what to ask in the final round.Read
- How to become a forward deployed engineerHow to become a forward deployed engineer: the backgrounds that map in, a skills self-assessment, what to learn first, the portfolio and the interview.Read
- How forward deployed engineering teams workHow forward deployed engineering teams work: pods, reference architectures, the first weeks on an account, the handoff, and what it means for your interview.Read
Questions people ask
Is there a free course for forward deployed engineers?
Yes. Claude Code for Forward Deployed Engineering is four recorded sessions with Hamza Farooq and Aishwarya Ashok, in 55 short chapters (7h 49m). One free account opens it and the Architect Track.
What is the Architect Track?
A free track that prepares you for Anthropic’s Claude Certified Architect exam: the five exam domains in 12 chapters, with sample questions and a study plan.
What should I learn first to become a forward deployed engineer?
Start with what listings ask for most: Python (33% of roles on the board), AWS (28%) and Azure (19%). Then practice what the stack doesn’t cover: scoping a vague ask, AI system design and working with a customer. How to become an FDE.
What does the live bootcamp add?
Six live weeks on Maven with Hamza Farooq. You build four projects end to end, learn how to land the role and pass the interview, and present your capstone at Demo Day. It costs $2,500, and the next cohort starts 14 Nov.
Want it taught live?
Six weeks with a cohort and four projects, built end to end. The next one starts 14 Nov.