Palantir coined 'forward deployed engineer' and built a business on it
Palantir popularized the concept of the forward deployed engineer (FDE) — essentially what consulting was, but for the software space. Their platform's power wasn't in how technically advanced it was, but in how customizable it was. Forward deployed engineers would go on site, customize the platform per client, and solve pain points far better than any generalized service could. That model was a massive driver of Palantir's business growth.
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