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SW

About

A Forward Deployed Engineer shaped by customer work, ambiguity and ownership.

Solly Welch is a customer-facing AI engineer with experience across IBM, an early-stage AI startup and an independently operated IT consultancy. His work sits at the point where product definition, software engineering and stakeholder communication meet.

He currently works at IBM as an AI Forward Deployed Engineer, deploying AI systems directly alongside customers - owning the full cycle from initial problem definition through architecture, implementation and production. Before that he was a Platform Engineer and Build Lead in IBM Client Engineering, where the same habits took shape: start with the user, reduce ambiguity early, then ship software that can stand up in the real world.

Across IBM engagements, Solly has worked on generative AI systems, retrieval-based applications, APIs, integrations and cloud-native deployments. He writes frontend and backend code, explains technical trade-offs to technical and non-technical stakeholders, and keeps delivery moving when requirements are still evolving.

Before IBM, he worked part-time at an AI healthcare startup and ran his own small IT consultancy. Those earlier roles reinforced habits that still define his work now: high ownership, direct customer communication and comfort operating without a perfect brief.

Outside work, he maintains and improves a 1971 MGB GT - a very different kind of engineering system, but another exercise in understanding how components, constraints and trade-offs fit together.

What stands out

  • Works directly with clients across multiple industries.
  • Translates ambiguous needs into working software and technical direction.
  • Has contributed to moving a customer AI system from pilot towards production use.
  • Brings startup and self-directed consultancy experience alongside IBM delivery work.

    • Career path

    Experience across consultancy, startup and enterprise customer delivery.

    The common thread across each step is responsibility: understanding the actual problem, making sensible trade-offs and building software that can be used rather than merely presented.

  • IBM

    AI Forward Deployed Engineer

    London, UK · August 2026 to Present

    Current focus

    Deploys AI systems directly alongside customers, owning the full lifecycle from problem definition through to production and ongoing iteration.

    • Works embedded with customers to identify high-value AI opportunities and translate them into production systems.
    • Owns end-to-end delivery across discovery, architecture, implementation, deployment and iteration.
    • Builds and ships full-stack AI applications using Python, TypeScript, React and Node.js with LLM, retrieval and orchestration components.
    • Acts as the primary technical contact for customers, communicating trade-offs and progress to both technical and non-technical stakeholders.
    • Develops reusable AI patterns, tooling and accelerators that reduce time-to-value on future engagements.
    • Mentors engineers and contributes to the broader IBM AI engineering practice.

  • IBM

    Platform Engineer / Build Lead

    London, UK · August 2024 to August 2026

    Led customer-facing technical builds involving generative AI, automation and cloud-native systems within IBM Client Engineering.

    • Worked directly with customers to understand workflows, constraints and desired business outcomes.
    • Helped define technical problems where requirements began incomplete or ambiguous.
    • Owned delivery across discovery, architecture, implementation, deployment and iteration.
    • Built applications using Python, TypeScript, JavaScript, React and Node.js, alongside AI services and integrations.
    • Developed retrieval, orchestration, API and integration components for customer-facing systems.
    • Communicated architectural decisions and technical trade-offs to both technical and non-technical stakeholders.
    • Coordinated multidisciplinary delivery while continuing to write code.
    • Mentored early-career engineers and contributed reusable patterns and engineering practices.

  • IBM

    Technology Engineer / Degree Apprentice

    London, UK · September 2022 to August 2024

    Built full-stack prototypes and minimum viable products for enterprise customers across cloud and AI use cases.

    • Developed Python, Node.js and React applications in rapid customer delivery cycles.
    • Built and deployed containerised workloads using Docker, Kubernetes, Red Hat OpenShift and IBM cloud platforms.
    • Integrated enterprise data, APIs, retrieval systems and AI model endpoints.
    • Participated in customer workshops, technical discovery and solution validation.
    • Contributed to cloud architecture, AI deployment and technical enablement.

  • Rowlands Computing

    Founder / Engineer

    August 2020 to September 2022

    Founded and operated a small IT support and consultancy business serving local customers.

    • Acquired and retained customers through direct service and practical problem-solving.
    • Diagnosed customer issues and translated them into clear technical solutions.
    • Owned scoping, delivery, customer communication and ongoing support.

  • AcuiQ

    Software Engineer, part-time

    United Kingdom · June 2020 to August 2022

    Worked with an early-stage AI healthcare startup in a fast-moving and ambiguous environment.

    • Developed web application functionality using Python and Flask.
    • Contributed to frontend functionality and product iteration.
    • Implemented smart-contract and decentralised payment integrations using Solidity.
    • Worked closely with a founding team where priorities evolved quickly.

    • Education

    Formal study alongside practical engineering work.

    Northeastern University London

    MSc Artificial Intelligence and Data Science

    Part-time and employer-funded · In progress

    • Relevant themes include artificial intelligence, data science, machine learning, statistics, linear algebra and applied software development.

    University of Winchester

    BSc (Hons) Digital and Technology Solutions, IT Consultancy pathway

    September 2022 to August 2025 · First-Class Honours

    • Overall result approximately 75%.
    • Synoptic project result: 93%.