Today, 13 November 2026, Nikkei Business Publications will publish “FDE: The New High-Paid Engineers of the AI Era.” The author is Yamashita Daisuke (山下 大介), the publisher is Nikkei Business Publications, and the book is an explanatory work featuring the voices of practitioners interviewed for the book, including a former Palantir FDE.
This book explains the reality of the FDE (Forward Deployed Engineer) role established by US company Palantir, based on interviews with current FDEs and an analysis of publicly available information from the past 20 years. The author is Yamashita Daisuke (山下 大介), the publisher is Nikkei Business Publications, the release date is 13 November 2026, and the list price is ¥2,420, including tax.
The book explains that the improvement in AI performance has created a shortage of personnel who can identify and solve problems in the field, leading to an increase in FDE hiring. The definition of FDE can differ from company to company, and the book aims to clarify the role's reality by returning to its origins.
The book's features include interviews with 3 practitioners, an analysis of systems centered on ontology, a depiction of the FDE workflow in 3 stages, Acquire, Expand, and Scale, and 7 qualities required to work as an FDE. Part 4 includes interviews with 3 practitioners.
As part of the publication commemorative initiatives, the book provides information on corporate reading groups led by the author and FDE training programs. In a comment, the author states the view that AI creates value not merely when it is introduced, but when it is integrated into the field.