realfast is India's first post-AI IT services company, built from scratch around one metric: how quickly a signed contract becomes working software a client is paying for. Founded by the team that scaled Gojek and backed by Peak XV Partners (formerly Sequoia India & SEA) and RTP Global.

Our platform, Exo, powers the entire delivery operation. It ingests client documentation, codebases, and requirements within hours, compressing weeks of traditional discovery into days, then works alongside our teams to deliver production-ready solutions. We've delivered production-ready solutions in days that traditionally take months. The methodology behind this is Real Agile, built specifically for how IT services works in the AI era.

We hire for judgment, because everything that doesn't require it is already automated. What's left is the job.

Here's what we're looking for

As a Lead - Forward Deployed Engineer at realfast.ai with 7–10 years of software engineering experience, you will lead the end-to-end lifecycle of high-complexity projects. A battle-tested engineer who can code like hell, understands what makes businesses tick, and can elevate an entire team while doing it.

You'll lead a team of Forward Deployed Engineers on client projects, working hand-in-hand with AI Transformation Leads to deliver software and products that help clients achieve their business goals. You'll own high-complexity projects end-to-end — driving product and technical design, navigating trade-offs, and ensuring timely delivery that upholds our standards of innovation and excellence.

This is a natural career progression from the FDE role. Like FDEs, you'll be deeply embedded in client work — but you'll also bring back learnings, patterns, and insights that have a significant impact on the platform we're building.

What You'll Do

• Lead client engagements, driving delivery and raising the bar on engineering excellence

  Partner with AI Transformation Leads to design and deliver solutions that achieve client business outcomes

  Work directly with customers and stakeholders — including users, data scientists, and cross-functional teams — to design and implement solutions

  Prioritise strategically, balancing quality, technical debt, and delivery timelines

  Champion delivery excellence by boosting predictability, quality, and throughput

  Deconstruct complex engineering problems and deliver robust solutions

  Improve code architecture with a focus on testability and maintainability

  Make smart trade-offs between beautiful code and shipping fast — we bias toward shipping

  Unblock and support team members to address challenges impacting delivery

  Set the standard for engineering best practices and first-principles thinking — be someone the team looks up to in terms of craft

  Build AI-powered solutions, including developing, fine-tuning, and integrating LLMs to enhance products, automate tasks, and drive innovation

  Feed learnings back to the platform — identify patterns, gaps, and opportunities from client work that shape the evolution of our platform

  Help build the team by mentoring engineers and finding other smart people

What You'll Bring

Experience

• 7–10 years of software engineering experience

  Deep expertise with a proven track record in a similar lead role

  Experience building applications from scratch using object-oriented languages (e.g., Ruby, Python)

  Experience solving 0-to-1 problems, identifying Product-Market Fit, and iterating with users to deliver solutions

  Strong proficiency across multiple programming languages and paradigms — it doesn't matter which

Technical Skills

• Exceptional grasp of software engineering principles

  Comprehensive understanding of engineering systems and architecture

  Hands-on across the full stack — front-end, back-end, data pipelines, and AI models

  Appreciation for how businesses make money using technology as a lever

Leadership & Communication

• Strong problem-solving skills with the ability to lead by example in technical and operational excellence

  Experience mentoring engineers and contributing to team growth

  Excellent communication skills across technical and non-technical audiences

  Leadership qualities: integrity, compassionate collaboration, and thorough preparedness

Mindset

• Comfortable working in a dynamic environment with ambiguity

  Strong grit and drive to make an impact

  Self-starter who can operate without detailed specs or extensive guidance

  This role is for you if

  • You're a polyglot engineer who loves to create working solutions, not just write code

    You're excited about building systems where AI owns concrete business outcomes

    You want to take state-of-the-art research into reliable production software

    You're interested in the business side of technology, not just the technical aspects

    You want to lead, mentor, and grow a team of high-calibre engineers

    You enjoy turning client-facing experience into platform improvements that scale

    This role is NOT for you if

    • You want a strictly defined role with clear boundaries

      You need detailed specs before you can start building anything

      You need extensive guidance and structure to be productive

      You're looking for a purely coding-focused position

      You prefer to specialise deeply in one technical area rather than being versatile