Head of Strategic Partnerships

Who You Are:

You are a strategic leader who can turn bold ideas into game-changing, impactful partnerships. You are creative and results-driven, with a passion for identifying and crafting opportunities that don't yet exist. You are a self-starter who knows how to approach an undefined space, have a knack for spotting and shaping new partnership opportunities, and are excited to define new deal structures. You are skilled at relationship management and can also balance big-picture thinking with hands-on execution. You thrive in a fast-paced, ambiguous, high-growth environment where strategic partnerships can shape the growth trajectory of a company.

Who We Are:

Ai2 is a world-leading AI research and development institute that builds breakthrough AI to solve the world's biggest problems. We deliver real-world impact through large-scale open models, data, artifacts, and AI agents. This role is a key leader on our Strategic Infrastructure team, which also includes Program Management, Design, Communications, Engineering, and People Operations. As a team, we help define Ai2's strategic vision and goals, and own operational execution of our goals. We are a highly collaborative team with a high bar for excellence, who aren't afraid to question how things have been done in the past to propose changes that drive the organization forward. It's a very exciting time to be part of this team as we are helping to transform the foundation for the future of Ai2.

Your Next Challenge:

You will own Ai2's Strategic Partnership program. You will play a pivotal role in shaping Ai2's growth by identifying, structuring, and executing partnerships that are critical to expanding our impact, and accelerating the growth and adoption of our products. This includes potential partnerships with technology companies, non-profits, and other key stakeholders that align with our mission and business objectives. You will be responsible for specific partnership and fundraising targets.

In this role, you will:

• Define and execute Ai2's partnership strategy to drive measurable outcomes to Ai2's growth.
• Design and negotiate complex agreements that create value for all stakeholders, ensuring long-term success and scalability.
• Conduct market and competitive analysis to develop a deep understanding of the industry, the technology landscape, and identify new opportunities that can help Ai2 scale
• Collaborate cross-functionally with research, engineering, program management, design, communications, legal, and finance teams to develop and implement partnership strategies.
• Build relationships with senior leadership at potential partner organizations to drive strategic collaborations.
• Define and own success metrics for our partnership program, ensuring targets are met while continuously optimizing existing partnerships for maximum impact.

What You'll Need:

• 12-15+ years of experience in strategic partnerships, business development, corporate development, or other related fields within the tech industry.
• Demonstrated track record of identifying, negotiating, and executing high-value partnerships that drive business growth and impact.
• Exceptional deal-making and negotiation abilities, with a creative mindset for structuring win-win agreements.
• Track record of exceeding partnership or fundraising goals.
• Strong analytical skills to assess market trends, competitive landscapes, and partnership opportunities.
• High level of financial acumen with experience in deal structuring, contract negotiations, and creative revenue sharing models.
• Excellent stakeholder management skills with the ability to engage and influence senior executives and cross-functional teams.
• Experience working in a fast-paced, high-growth environment with the ability to adapt to changing priorities while driving execution.
• Familiarity with legal and regulatory considerations related to partnerships, IP, and fundraising efforts.

Physical Demands and Work Environment:

The physical demands described here are representative of those that must be met by a team member to successfully perform the essential functions of this position. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the functions.

• Must be able to remain in a stationary position for long periods of time.
• The ability to communicate information and ideas so others will understand. Must be able to exchange accurate information in these situations.
• The ability to observe details at close range.
• Can work under deadlines.

A Little More About Ai2:

Ai2 is a Seattle based non-profit AI research institute founded in 2014 by the late Paul Allen. Our mission is building breakthrough AI to solve the world's biggest problems. We develop foundational AI research and innovation to deliver real-world impact through large-scale open models, data, robotics, conservation, and beyond.

In addition to Ai2's core mission, we also aim to contribute to humanity through our treatment of each member of the Ai2 Team. Some highlights are:

• We are a learning organization - because everything Ai2 does is ground-breaking, we are learning every day. Similarly, through weekly Ai2 Academy lectures, a wide variety of world-class AI experts as guest speakers, and our commitment to your personal on-going education, Ai2 is a place where you will have opportunities to continue learning alongside your coworkers.
• We value diversity - We seek to hire, support, and promote people from all genders, ethnicities, and all levels of experience regardless of age. We particularly encourage applications from women, non-binary individuals, people of color, members of the LGBTQA+ community, and people with disabilities of any kind.
• We value inclusion - We understand the value that people's individual experiences and perspectives can bring to an organization, and we are building a culture in which all voices are heard, respected and considered.
• We emphasize a healthy work/life balance - we believe our team members are happiest and most productive when their work/life balance is optimized. While we value powerful research results which drive our mission forward, we also value dinner with family, weekend time, and vacation time. We offer generous paid vacation and sick leave as well as family leave.
• We are collaborative and transparent - we consider ourselves a team, all moving with a common purpose. We are quick to cheer our successes, and even quicker to share and jointly problem solve our failures.
• We are in Seattle - and our office is on the water! We have mountains, we have lakes, we have four seasons, we bike to work, we have a vibrant theater scene, and we have so much else. We even have kayaks for you to paddle right outside our front door. We welcome interest from applicants from outside of the United States.
• We are friendly- chances are you will like every one of the 200+ (and growing) people who work here. We do.

Ai2 is proud to be an Equal Opportunity employer. We do not discriminate based upon race, religion, color, national origin, sex (including pregnancy, childbirth, or related medical conditions), sexual orientation, gender, gender identity, gender expression, transgender status, sexual stereotypes, age, status as a protected veteran, status as an individual with a disability, or other applicable legally protected characteristics. You may view the related Know Your Rights compliance poster and the Pay Transparency Nondiscrimination Provision by clicking on their corresponding links.

This employer participates in E-Verify and will provide the federal government with your Form I-9 information to confirm that you are authorized to work in the U.S. If E-Verify cannot confirm that you are authorized to work, this employer is required to give you written instructions and an opportunity to contact the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) or Social Security Administration (SSA) so you can begin to resolve the issue before the employer can take any action against you, including terminating your employment. Employers can only use E-Verify once you have accepted a job offer and completed the Form I-9.

We are committed to providing reasonable accommodations to employees and applicants with disabilities to the full extent required by the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). If you feel you need a reasonable accommodation pursuant to the ADA, you are encouraged to contact us at recruiting@allenai.org.

Benefits:

• Team members and their families are covered by medical, dental, vision, basic life insurance, basic accidental death and dismemberment insurance, short-term disability, long-term disability, and an employee assistance program.
• Team members are able to enroll in our voluntary life insurance program, our voluntary accidental death and dismemberment program, our health savings account plan, our healthcare reimbursement arrangement plan, and our health care and dependent care flexible spending account plans.
• Team members are able to enroll in our company's 401k plan.
• Team members will receive $125 per month to assist with commuting or internet expenses and will also receive $200 per month for fitness and wellbeing expenses.
• Team members will also receive up to ten sick days per year, up to seven personal days per year, up to 20 vacation days per year and twelve paid holidays throughout the calendar year.
• Team members will be able to receive annual bonuses and can participate in the long-term incentive plan.

Note: This job description in no way states or implies that these are the only duties to be performed by the team members(s) of this position. Team members will be required to follow any other job-related instructions and to perform any other job-related duties requested by any person authorized to give instructions or assignments. All duties and responsibilities are essential functions and requirements and are subject to possible modification to reasonably accommodate individuals with disabilities. To perform this job successfully, the team member(s) will possess the skills, aptitudes, and abilities to perform each duty proficiently. Some requirements may exclude individuals who pose a direct threat or significant risk to the health or safety of themselves or others. The requirements listed in this document are the minimum levels of knowledge, skills, or abilities. This document does not create an employment contract, implied or otherwise, other than an at will relationship.