Director, IP

Cerebras Systems, Inc.; Sunnyvale (CA); On-site; USD 180,000 - 240,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Restaurant allowed?

Job summary

Cerebras Systems is seeking a Director, IP to lead Cerebras' global intellectual property strategy. You will partner with engineering, research, product, security, marketing, and leadership to build, protect, and leverage patents, trademarks, copyrights, trade secrets, and open source assets for Cerebras' AI hardware, software, cloud services, and strategic initiatives.

This hands‑on, business‑facing role requires identifying high‑value inventions, guiding filing strategy, managing outside

Qualifications

• J.D. from an accredited law school and bar admission in at least one U.S. state (California preferred).
• Registration to practice before the USPTO.
• 10+ years of experience drafting and prosecuting patent applications in AI infrastructure, HPC, semiconductors, electrical engineering, computer science, systems, networking, cloud infrastructure, or related areas.
• Technical undergraduate degree or equivalent technical experience in EE/CS/Physics or related discipline.
• Ability to understand complex AI infrastructure, hardware, networking, cloud, and software systems and convert disclosures into strategically valuable patent claims.
• Experience managing outside patent counsel and global portfolios with emphasis on quality, cost, timing, and business alignment.
• Strong written and verbal communication, able to explain patent strategy and risk to engineers, business leaders, and executives.
• Practical judgment, organization, attention to detail, and ability to manage multiple priorities in a fast-moving environment.
• Collaborative attitude and enthusiasm for advanced computing, AI infrastructure, and deep technology.

Responsibilities

• Develop and execute Cerebras’ enterprise IP strategy aligned with product roadmap, business objectives, competitive positioning, and corporate growth.
• Advise executive leadership on IP strategy, competitive landscape, IP risks, licensing opportunities, standards participation, and emerging AI legal developments.
• Build and maintain an integrated IP portfolio spanning patents, trademarks, copyrights, trade secrets, domain names, and other proprietary assets.
• Drive strategic invention harvesting and patent portfolio development across the full AI infrastructure stack.
• Partner directly with engineers, researchers, product leaders, and executives to identify patentable innovation and align filing decisions with technical roadmaps and business priorities.
• Manage U.S. and international patent preparation and prosecution, including directing outside counsel, reviewing applications and office action responses, setting claim strategy, and maintaining quality, cost, and timing discipline.
• Build subject matter expertise in Cerebras' key technical areas and proactively identify portfolio opportunities tied to product releases, customer deployments, partnerships, and standards.
• Advise on IP issues relating to generative AI, foundation models, and evolving regulatory developments affecting AI technologies.
• Support IP provisions in customer agreements, cloud and data center arrangements, supply chain and manufacturing relationships, university collaborations, licensing, and other strategic transactions.

Skills

Communication skills

Legal drafting

Patent prosecution

Strategic thinking

Cross-functional collaboration

Management of outside counsel

Education

J.D. from an accredited law school

Bar admission in at least one US state (California preferred)

USPTO registration

Tools

USPTO registration

Job description

Cerebras Systems builds the world's largest AI chip, 56 times larger than GPUs. This architecture allows Cerebras to deliver industry‑leading training and inference speeds; over 10 times faster than GPU‑based hyperscale cloud inference services.

This order of magnitude increase in speed is transforming the user experience of AI applications, unlocking real‑time iteration and increasing intelligence via additional agentic computation.

Cerebras works with the leading model labs, global enterprises, and cutting‑edge AI‑native startups. OpenAI recently announced a multi‑year partnership with Cerebras, to deploy 750 megawatts of scale, transforming key workloads with ultra high‑speed inference.

About the Role

Cerebras has built a breakthrough architecture that is unlocking new opportunities for the AI industry. As Director, IP, you will lead the development and execution of Cerebras’ global intellectual property strategy. You will partner with engineering, research, product, security, marketing, and executive leadership to build, protect, and leverage the company’s patent, trademark, copyright, trade secret, and open source assets in support of Cerebras’ AI hardware, software, cloud services, and strategic business initiatives.

This is a hands‑on, business‑facing role for an IP attorney who enjoys working directly with inventors and technical leaders building advanced AI infrastructure. You will identify high‑value inventions, guide global filing strategy, manage outside prosecution counsel, support IP risk assessments, and advise on licensing, collaboration, supply chain, customer, and strategic transaction matters. The right candidate brings technical curiosity, practical judgment, and the ability to turn complex AI hardware, systems, software, and infrastructure issues into clear, actionable guidance.

Responsibilities

• Develop and execute Cerebras’ enterprise intellectual property strategy aligned with product roadmap, business objectives, competitive positioning, and corporate growth.
• Advise executive leadership on IP strategy, competitive landscape, IP risks, licensing opportunities, standards participation, and emerging AI legal developments.
• Build and maintain an integrated IP portfolio spanning patents, trademarks, copyrights, trade secrets, domain names, and other proprietary assets.
• Drive strategic invention harvesting and patent portfolio development across the full AI infrastructure stack.
• Partner directly with engineers, researchers, product leaders, and executives to identify patentable innovation, improve invention disclosure quality, and align filing decisions with technical roadmaps and business priorities.
• Manage U.S. and international patent preparation and prosecution, including directing outside counsel, reviewing applications and office action responses, setting claim strategy, and maintaining quality, cost, and timing discipline.
• Build subject matter expertise in Cerebras' key technical areas and proactively identify portfolio opportunities tied to product releases, customer deployments, partnerships, competitive developments, and emerging standards.
• Advise on intellectual property issues relating to generative AI, foundation models, and evolving legal and regulatory developments affecting AI technologies.
• Support commercial, corporate, and product counsel on IP provisions in customer agreements, cloud and data center arrangements, supply chain and manufacturing relationships, university and research collaborations, licensing, and other strategic transactions.

Skills & Qualifications

• J.D. from an accredited law school and active membership in at least one U.S. state bar; California bar membership is preferred.
• Registration to practice before the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office.
• 10+ years of experience drafting and prosecuting patent applications, preferably with meaningful work in AI infrastructure, high‑performance computing, semiconductors, electrical engineering, computer science, systems, networking, cloud infrastructure, or related areas.
• Technical undergraduate degree or equivalent technical experience; electrical engineering, computer engineering, computer science, physics, or a closely related discipline preferred.
• Ability to understand complex AI infrastructure, hardware, networking, cloud, and software systems and convert technical disclosures into strategically valuable patent claims.
• Experience managing outside patent counsel and global patent portfolios with attention to quality, cost, timing, and business alignment.
• Strong written and verbal communication skills, including the ability to explain patent strategy and risk clearly to engineers, business leaders, and executives.
• Practical judgment, strong organization, attention to detail, and comfort managing multiple priorities in a fast‑moving environment.
• Collaborative working style, intellectual curiosity, and enthusiasm for advanced computing, AI infrastructure, and deep technology.

Preferred Experience

• Prior in‑house patent counsel experience at a high‑growth technology company, semiconductor company, AI infrastructure provider, cloud provider, systems company, or advanced computing business.
• Experience with patent portfolios involving AI infrastructure platforms, AI accelerators, high‑performance computing systems, computer architecture, or data center infrastructure.
• Experience counseling on patent issues in commercial transactions, strategic partnerships, standards organizations, university collaborations, open‑source software, supply chain/manufacturing deals, or IP licensing.
• Experience with patent assertions, invalidity and infringement analysis, or litigation support.
• Foreign filing strategy experience, including PCT practice and prosecution before major non-U.S. patent offices.
• Ability to build repeatable processes, dashboards, and executive‑ready reporting for invention intake, portfolio review, outside counsel management, and IP risk tracking.

Why Join Cerebras

People who are serious about software make their own hardware. At Cerebras, we have built a breakthrough architecture that is unlocking new opportunities for the AI industry. With dozens of model releases and rapid growth, we’ve reached an inflection point in our business. Members of our team tell us there are five main reasons they joined Cerebras:

1. Build a breakthrough AI platform beyond the constraints of the GPU.
2. Publish and open source their cutting‑edge AI research.
3. Work on one of the fastest AI supercomputers in the world.
4. Enjoy job stability with startup vitality.
5. Our simple, non‑corporate work culture that respects individual beliefs.

Find out more about what it's like to work at Cerebras here!

Apply today and become part of the forefront of groundbreaking advancements in AI!

Cerebras Systems is committed to creating an equal and diverse environment and is proud to be an equal opportunity employer. We celebrate different backgrounds, perspectives, and skills. We believe inclusive teams build better products and companies. We try every day to build a work environment that empowers people to do their best work through continuous learning, growth and support of those around them.

This website or its third‑party tools process personal data. For more details, click here to review our CCPA disclosure notice.