Commercial Counsel

BrainCo; San Francisco (CA); On-site; USD 130,000 - 180,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Competitive salary

Equity options

Performance incentives

Job summary

BrainCo, an innovative AI startup in San Francisco, is seeking an in-house attorney to establish its legal foundations. You will work across teams including Sales and Business Development on strategic partnerships and high-value deals.

The ideal candidate possesses keen analytical skills, a proactive mindset, and a solid legal background, coupled with a passion for technological advancement in public sector applications. Join us to make a substantial impact!

Qualifications

• 5-8 years of legal experience with a combination of large law firm and in-house experience.
• Strong background negotiating complex commercial contracts.
• Ability to navigate ambiguity in a fast-paced startup environment.

Responsibilities

• Advise on employment agreements and policies.
• Support fundraising negotiations.
• Handle commercial lease reviews and negotiations.
• Stay ahead of legal developments affecting the business.
• Serve as legal SME for AI-assisted tools.

Skills

Analytical and problem-solving skills

Communication skills

Negotiation skills

Proactive mindset

Education

J.D. and active bar membership

Tools

Legal research tools

Contract management software

Job description

About Brain Co.

Brain Co. is an applied AI startup co-founded by Jared Kushner and Elad Gil, and backed by leading Silicon Valley builders including Patrick Collison and Andrej Karpathy.

We are building AI applications for the world’s most important institutions, delivering impact on real-world problems across governments, healthcare systems, and critical industries.

Our progress so far:

• Automated construction permitting for a sovereign government 80% faster, unlocking $375M+ in value
• Optimized supply chains for a leading global energy company 30% lower cost, 99% reliability, preventing $100M+ in losses
• Streamlined hospital patient care across national health systems 40% better outcomes, 80% less admin work

Company momentum:

• Raised a $55M Series A from leading investors
• Built a team of 70+ AI experts from Tesla, Google DeepMind, NVIDIA, and Databricks

At Brain Co., we focus on applying frontier AI to real institutional challenges, working alongside governments, healthcare systems, and critical industries to modernize how essential services operate.

We are looking for leaders who want to help bring new technology into institutions that impact millions of people.

About the Role

Brain Co. is hiring an exceptional, business-minded deal lawyer to be our first in-house attorney and build our Legal foundations. You will work alongside key partners throughout the company — including Sales, Business Development, Finance, and the executive team — to close first-of-kind strategic partnerships and high-value deals. You’ll work on a wide variety of deal types, many of which open new routes to market for Brain Co. across government, regulated industries, and major enterprises. You’ll also be the lawyer on major deals and projects that make an immediate impact on our fast-growing, dynamic business. Above all, you’ll help our business partners and executives solve problems and take down roadblocks.

We’re looking for an experienced lawyer with a strong work ethic, excellent analytical and communication skills, and incredibly solid fundamentals as a lawyer. The ideal candidate is creative and thinks outside‑the-box, is a self‑starter who takes ownership over initiatives, and is hands‑on taking into consideration the lowest level of detail.

This role reports to the COO. Approximately 95% of the work is substantive commercial legal; the remaining ~5% is product advisory support for Brain Co.’s legal AI tools. There’s meaningful room to grow the scope and the function over time.

What You’ll Do

• Employment: Advise on offer letters, contractor agreements, equity grants, employee policies, and terminations; coordinate with outside employment specialists as needed.
• Fundraising: Support review and negotiation of term sheets, SAFEs, and equity financing documents alongside company and investors’ counsel.
• Real Estate: Handle commercial lease review and negotiation; manage outside counsel where appropriate.
• Regulatory Awareness: Stay ahead of legal and regulatory developments affecting our business, including AI, govtech, data privacy, security, and permitting.
• Product Advisory: Serve as legal SME for the teams building Brain Co.’s AI-assisted legal and regulatory tools.

Who You Are

• J.D. and active bar membership (California admission or eligibility to waive in strongly preferred).
• 5-8 years of legal experience, with a combination of large law firm and in-house experience at a tech company.
• Strong background negotiating complex commercial contracts, preferably in SaaS, AI, or enterprise software, including a track record of leading the negotiation of major deals with C-level execs.
• Strong communication skills, verbal and written; able to partner with both legal and non-legal stakeholders and translate complex legal issues into clear, actionable guidance.
• A proactive mindset and the ability to navigate ambiguity in a fast-paced startup environment.
• Sound judgement and a pragmatic approach — protective of the company’s interests without being an obstacle to getting deals done.

Bonus Points For:

• Experience advising on AI, data privacy, or regulatory frameworks (DPAs, BAAs, security provisions).
• Experience supporting business development or strategic partnership teams.
• Background at or adjacent to regulated industries, government agencies, or policy institutions, given Brain Co.’s permitting and govtech focus.
• Comfortable and effective in front of customers.

Join Us

If you’re excited about helping modernize government and bringing frontier AI into the public sector, we’d love to hear from you.

Location

San Francisco preferred, but flexible on location. Regular travel to government partners and Brain Co. offices will be expected.

Compensation

Competitive compensation including salary, equity, and performance incentives.