How It Works

From first call to code in your repo.

No 75-day hiring cycle. No 6-round interview gauntlet. Here's exactly what happens when you deploy a Forward Deployed Engineer from Kalvium Labs.

01

Discovery Call

30 minutes · Venkat · Free

You tell us what you need. Not a 40-page requirements doc — a conversation. What are you building? What's your stack? How many engineers do you need? When do you need them?

We ask about:

  • Tech stack — languages, frameworks, CI/CD, cloud provider
  • Team structure — who the FDE reports to, standup cadence, tools (Slack, Jira, Linear)
  • AI requirements — LLMs, RAG, agents, computer vision, or general full-stack with AI features
  • Timeline — when you need someone, for how long
  • Success criteria — what "good" looks like in 90 days

What you get: A clear yes/no on whether we can match an engineer, a timeline, and a price quote based on the experience level needed.

02

Engineer Matching

3-7 days · From a bench of 200+

We match from our bench of 200+ AI-native engineers. Not an algorithm. Our team knows every engineer's strengths, experience, and deployment history.

You interview them. Your bar, your standards. We shortlist 2-3 candidates. You talk to them, assess technical fit, and decide. If none of them work, we go back to the bench.

Every engineer on our bench has been through the same structured training program: LLMs, RAG pipelines, agentic systems, full-stack development, and production deployment. The curriculum is designed by our CTO. The quality is consistent.

What you get: 2-3 pre-vetted AI-native engineers matched to your stack and domain. You interview, you choose.

03

Your FDE Starts Shipping

Week 1 · 30 hrs/week · Your codebase

From day one, your FDE works like any other engineer on your team:

  • Joins your standups — same standup, same Slack channels, same sprint rituals
  • Pushes to your repo — your GitHub/GitLab, your branch strategy, your code review process
  • Uses your tools — Jira, Linear, Notion, whatever you run. No proprietary platform from our side.
  • Works your hours — 30 hours/week, Monday-Friday, 12 PM-6 PM IST core hours, plus any scheduled team meetings outside this slot

The goal: after the first two weeks, your FDE is indistinguishable from a direct hire in terms of workflow integration. The only difference is the contract sits with us, not your HR.

What you get: A dedicated AI engineer in your repo, your standups, your Slack. Shipping production code from week one.

04

Scale or Wind Down

After 3-month minimum · Month-to-month

After the 3-month minimum engagement, you're on month-to-month. Three options:

  • Scale up — need another engineer? We match and deploy a second (or third) FDE. Same process, faster this time because we know your stack.
  • Continue — your FDE keeps shipping. Month-to-month, no long-term contract.
  • Wind down — project wrapping up? Give us a month's notice. Clean handoff, documentation, knowledge transfer to your team.

What you get: Flexibility. Add engineers when you need them, wind down when you don't. No lock-in beyond the initial 3 months.

Quality & Trust

How we keep the bar high.

Training Pipeline

Every engineer from the same program

Every FDE is trained through India's first AI-native engineering program. Curriculum designed by our CTO (ex-HackerRank, ex-Google). LLMs, RAG, agentic systems, full-stack development. Not a 6-week bootcamp — a multi-year, project-based program.

Data Privacy

Your data stays your data

NDAs signed before any access is granted. Your codebase, your data, your IP. We never use client data across projects. When the engagement ends, access is revoked cleanly.

Dedicated

One engineer, one client

Your FDE works on your project only. Not split across 2-3 accounts. 30 hours/week, every week, focused on your codebase and your priorities.

Replacement

Not working out? We swap.

If the engineer isn't the right fit, tell us. We'll match a replacement from the bench. The 200+ engineer pipeline means we can swap without downtime.

Typical Timeline

How long it takes.

Day 0

Discovery call

30 minutes. Requirements, stack, timeline.

Day 3-7

Engineer shortlisted

2-3 candidates matched. You interview, you choose.

Day 7-14

FDE starts

In your repo, your standups, pushing code.

Month 3

Minimum engagement met

Continue month-to-month, add more FDEs, or wind down.

Ongoing

Scale as needed

Add more engineers. Each new deployment is faster.

Ready to deploy?

Tell us what you need. We'll have an engineer matched in under a week.

Talk to Us on WhatsApp

Usually reply within a few hours. | Or email hello@kalviumlabs.ai

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