Hitachi, Ltd. is building a structure and developing human resources for the "FDE (Forward Deployed Engineer)" role, a profession that enters customer sites and handles a wide range of tasks from AI implementation to value creation.
Hitachi promotes training of "FDEs" to drive AI implementation and value creation at customer sites
This article is a translation. Read the Japanese original
FDE is a role proposed by the U.S.-based Palantir, referring to the role of implementing software tailored to a customer's complex challenges. Currently, in addition to AI platform providers like OpenAI, there is a growing trend among SIers and consulting firms to transition existing talent into this role.
At Hitachi, FDEs differ from traditional SEs (System Engineers) in that their purpose is to work alongside customers from the upstream processes to solve problems using AI. The company's approach is characterized by deploying teams that combine consultants, industry experts, and AI specialists.
In development environments, the use of AI has made prototyping from the design stage easier, leading to earlier collaboration between consultants and engineers. Furthermore, as technological evolution increases cases where customers themselves cannot fully grasp their challenges, FDEs are playing a role in providing proactive proposals while supporting everything from understanding existing systems.
Sources
- 日系SIerの「御用聞き」は流行りの「FDE」に花開くか？ 日立が語る“時代の変化” （ITmedia AI+、2026-09-28）