Forward Deployed Engineer

The Walt Disney Company; Burbank (CA); On-site; USD 118,000 - 158,000; Full time

Job summary

The Walt Disney Company is seeking an ambitious Forward Deployed Engineer to join its Applied AI Acceleration practice in Burbank. You will build AI-powered features across Disney's Marketing, Finance, Parks Operations, HR, Studios, and other teams, shaping solutions from problem framing to working products.

This role is an early-career builder position on a small team led by a hands-on manager. Expect direct stakeholder collaboration, end-to-end shipping, and comfort with tools like Claude,

Qualifications

• Minimum 3 years shipping software for real users, including at least 1 year shipping AI-powered features.
• Experience with modern AI development tools and methods, such as prompt design, agents, RAG, LLM APIs, and evals.
• Daily or frequent use of AI coding tools such as Cursor, Claude Code, or similar tools.
• Ability to read and reason about code, debug with teammates, and work with data using SQL, APIs, or basic transformations.
• Strong product and business judgment, with experience connecting features to user needs and business outcomes.
• Strong learning agility and comfort working with new tools and changing technology.
• Ability to communicate clearly with senior stakeholders.

Responsibilities

• Build and ship AI-powered features from problem definition through production.
• Work directly with stakeholders to understand business needs and gather feedback.
• Own the user experience, including workflows, interfaces, automation, and human-in-the-loop decisions.
• Use tools such as LLM APIs, prompt design, RAG, agents, and evaluation methods to solve problems effectively.
• Build within Disney’s enterprise systems with appropriate security, monitoring, and operational practices.
• Test changes before launch using regression checks, golden sets, and other evaluation methods.
• Contribute reusable code, tools, and patterns when they can help future engagements.
• Partner with teammates through code reviews, debugging, and shared problem solving.
• Explain technical decisions and tradeoffs clearly to business stakeholders.

Skills

AI development tools

Prompt design

LLM APIs

SQL / APIs data handling

Stakeholder communication

Learning agility

Product judgment

Shipping software to users

Education

Bachelor’s degree in computer science or related field

Tools

Cursor

Claude Code

LLM tools

Job description

Forward Deployed Engineer

Job ID 10155880

Location Burbank, California, United States / Glendale, California, United States

Business The Walt Disney Company (Corporate)

Date posted Aug. 25, 2026

Job Summary:

This team works in office Monday to Thursday. * Please include a portfolio of your most impactful work

The Enterprise Technology mission is to deliver technology solutions that align to business strategies while enabling enterprise efficiency and promoting cross-company collaborative innovation. Our group drives competitive advantage by enhancing our consumer experiences, enabling business growth, and advancing operational excellence.

You will build AI-powered products within Disney’s Applied AI Acceleration practice, partnering with teams across Marketing, Finance, Parks Operations, HR, Studios, and other business areas. These teams bring real business challenges and ideas for how AI could help. Your role is to clarify the problem, build the right solution, and get working products in front of users quickly.

This is an early-career builder role on a small team led by a hands-on Manager. You will work directly with stakeholders, define what is worth building, and ship features end-to-end. You should be comfortable using AI tools such as Claude, Cursor, agents, and emerging platforms to build practical solutions.

We are looking for curious, adaptable builders who learn quickly and enjoy turning ideas into products people use. This role is a strong fit for product builders, designers, engineers, operators, and founders who have experience shipping AI products.

Responsibilities:

• Build and ship AI-powered features from problem definition through production.

• Work directly with stakeholders to understand business needs and gather feedback.

• Own the user experience, including workflows, interfaces, automation, and human-in-the-loop decisions.

• Use tools such as LLM APIs, prompt design, RAG, agents, and evaluation methods to solve problems effectively.

• Build within Disney’s enterprise systems with appropriate security, monitoring, and operational practices.

• Test changes before launch using regression checks, golden sets, and other evaluation methods.

• Contribute reusable code, tools, and patterns when they can help future engagements.

• Partner with teammates through code reviews, debugging, and shared problem solving.

• Explain technical decisions and tradeoffs clearly to business stakeholders.

Required Qualifications:

• Minimum 3 years of experience shipping software products for real users, including at least 1 year shipping AI-powered features in production.

• Experience with modern AI development tools and methods, such as prompt design, agents, RAG, LLM APIs, and evals.

• Daily or frequent use of AI coding tools such as Cursor, Claude Code, or similar tools.

• Ability to read and reason about code, debug with teammates, and work with data using SQL, APIs, or basic transformations.

• Strong product and business judgment, with experience connecting features to user needs and business outcomes.

• Strong learning agility and comfort working with new tools and changing technology.

• Ability to communicate clearly with senior stakeholders.

Preferred Qualifications:

• Experience as a product manager, designer, operator, engineer, founder, or builder who has used AI tools to create working products.

• Experience building AI products without a dedicated engineering team.

• Forward-deployed engineering or similar experience.

• Strong design-engineering instincts and ability to ship polished user experiences.

• Experience working across multiple business areas such as media, parks, retail, operations, HR, or finance.

• Experience with evaluation methods such as golden sets, trace analysis, LLM-as-judge, or production eval pipelines.

• Strong writing skills for documentation, retrospectives, and technical decisions.

• Experience with enterprise-scale data, legacy systems, or complex stakeholder environments.

Required Education:

• Bachelor’s degree in computer science, Information Systems, Software, Electrical or Electronics Engineering, or comparable field of study and/or equivalent work experience

#DISNEYTECH

The hiring range for this position in Glendale, CA or Burbank, CA is $117,500 to $157,500 per year. The base pay actually offered will take into account internal equity and also may vary depending on the candidate’s geographic region, job-related knowledge, skills, and experience among other factors. A bonus and/or long-term incentive units may be provided as part of the compensation package, in addition to the full range of medical, financial, and/or other benefits, dependent on the level and position offered.

About The Walt Disney Company (Corporate):

At Disney Corporate you can see how the businesses behind the Company’s powerful brands come together to create the most innovative, far-reaching and admired entertainment company in the world. As a member of a corporate team, you’ll work with world-class leaders driving the strategies that keep The Walt Disney Company at the leading edge of entertainment. See and be seen by other innovative thinkers as you enable the greatest storytellers in the world to create memories for millions of families around the globe.

About The Walt Disney Company:

The Walt Disney Company, together with its subsidiaries and affiliates, is a leading diversified international family entertainment and media enterprise that includes three core business segments: Disney Entertainment, ESPN, and Disney Experiences. From humble beginnings as a cartoon studio in the 1920s to its preeminent name in the entertainment industry today, Disney proudly continues its legacy of creating world-class stories and experiences for every member of the family. Disney’s stories, characters and experiences reach consumers and guests from every corner of the globe. With operations in more than 40 countries, our employees and cast members work together to create entertainment experiences that are both universally and locally cherished.

This position is with Disney Worldwide Services, Inc. , which is part of a business we call The Walt Disney Company (Corporate) .

Disney Worldwide Services, Inc. is an equal opportunity employer. Applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, religion, color, sex, sexual orientation, gender, gender identity, gender expression, national origin, ancestry, age, marital status, military or veteran status, medical condition, genetic information or disability, or any other basis prohibited by federal, state or local law. Disney champions a business environment where ideas and decisions from all people help us grow, innovate, create the best stories and be relevant in a constantly evolving world.

Disability Accommodation For Employment Applications

The Walt Disney Company and its Affiliated Companies are Equal Employment Opportunity employers and welcome all job seekers including individuals with disabilities and veterans with disabilities. If you have a disability and believe you need a reasonable accommodation in order to search for a job opening or apply for a position, email [e-mail] with your request. This email address is not for general employment inquiries or correspondence. We will only respond to those requests that are related to the accessibility of the online application system due to a disability.