Head of Business Development

Lumai Limited; San Francisco (CA); On-site; USD 180,000 - 260,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Share Option Scheme

L&D Allowance

25 days holiday

Socials and off-sites

Job summary

Lumai Limited is seeking a restless Head of Business Development to lead our North America expansion from the Bay Area. You will build and own relationships with hyperscalers, cloud providers, system integrators, and data-center partners, shaping Lumai’s regional GTM and driving adoption of our optical AI acceleration platform.

You will map ecosystems, develop partnerships, and guide the full BD lifecycle from initial engagement to strategic growth, possibly building and leading Lumai’s NA BD

Qualifications

• 10+ years of experience in business development or strategic partnerships in tech/AI sectors
• Strong network across North American AI, data center, and cloud ecosystems
• Proven track record of building strategic partnerships and closing deals
• Deep understanding of AI compute landscape including hyperscalers and data center tech
• Excellent communication, negotiation and executive-level presentation skills
• Ability to lead in fast-paced, pre-product environments and recruit/build teams
• Willingness to travel across North America and to Lumai's UK HQ

Responsibilities

• Develop and execute Lumai's North American go-to-market strategy
• Map ecosystems, identify partners, and open doors across AI and data infrastructure
• Build deep executive-level relationships with hyperscalers, system integrators and data centers
• Represent Lumai at conferences and events, shaping market perception
• Collaborate with leadership and engineering to feed market insights into product strategy

Job description

The Opportunity

Lumai is redefining how the world computes. We are an ambitious, venture-backed UK startup pioneering a breakthrough AI accelerator for data centers which uses 3D optical compute. Our radical technology uses light to perform computation at orders of magnitude faster speeds and at far greater scales than ever before, all whilst consuming far less energy than traditional approaches.

Lumai is unlocking performance and efficiency gains that could transform the economics of AI and compute infrastructure and reshape how intelligence scales globally.

If you are passionate about bringing groundbreaking technology to market, and want to be part of a team pushing the boundaries of what is physically possible, Lumai is where you can make it happen.

About Lumai

Founded in 2022, Lumai is a University of Oxford spinout using optical processing to accelerate large language models (LLMs) and other transformer-based AI systems. The team combines expertise in optical computing, machine learning, and physics.

Lumai has already secured over $15 million in investment from leading deep-tech investors like Constructor Capital, IP Group, PhotonVentures and government grants, and is scaling rapidly to deploy the fastest optical compute currently available globally.

The Role

We are looking for a driven and entrepreneurial Head of Business Development to spearhead our expansion into North America. We are now establishing a permanent presence in the region, and this role will be pivotal in representing Lumai on the ground – expanding and building strategic relationships, mapping key ecosystems, and positioning Lumai at the forefront of the AI hardware revolution. For the right candidate, this is a rare opportunity to build and eventually lead Lumai’s business development team in North America.

As our Head of Business Development in North America, you will be the face of the company in the region. We are looking for someone who can develop deep partnerships across an organisation, and open doors across the AI, compute acceleration and data center landscape, by bridging business and transformative technology benefits.

In this strategic role, you will lead engagement with hyperscalers, system integrators, and data center partners, introducing our breakthrough optical-based AI acceleration technology that delivers unprecedented performance, energy efficiency, and total cost of ownership advantages. You will shape our regional go-to-market efforts and help drive adoption of a technology platform capable of reshaping the AI compute stack.

You will identify and engage with the leading players in the AI and accelerator ecosystem: AI cloud providers (neo cloud), AI model developers, hyperscalers, data center operators, as well as other data-intensive sectors that require rapid and efficient computational throughput. You will be responsible for cultivating partnerships, expanding Lumai’s presence, and guiding the full business development lifecycle - from initial engagement to long-term strategic growth. You will shape early partnerships, understand requirements, and help guide our product and go-to-market strategy. You will contribute directly to the strategic vision of the company at the leadership level and assist with future fundraising efforts as we raise additional capital.

What You'll Do

• Build and own strategic relationships across North American AI and data infrastructure ecosystems
• Build market intelligence to shape Lumai’s go-to-market approach and strengthen our competitive position
• Engage with executives, technologists, and partners to understand technical and commercial needs and to match needs with Lumai product benefits
• Map key organizations, influence decision-makers, and identify partnership opportunities
• Represent the company at major AI and compute conferences — including speaking engagements and networking events
• Work closely with Lumai’s leadership and engineering teams to feed market insight into product and strategy
• Operate independently in a fast-moving, sometimes ambiguous, pre-product environment

What We're Looking For

Must-Have

• 10+ years of experience in semiconductors, data centers, or HPC, including at least 5 years in business development or strategic account management
• Experience in scaling deep tech ventures is strongly preferred
• Deep understanding of the AI compute landscape, including hyperscalers, cloud providers, and AI model developers
• Strong understanding of data center infrastructure (CPU, GPU, networking) markets with demonstrated knowledge of these technologies
• Strong existing network within North American AI and data center ecosystems
• Self-motivated and collaborative leader with a track record of driving cross-functional initiatives across organizations and partnerships with global ecosystem partners
• Comfortable working in an early-stage, fast-paced and sometimes high-ambiguity environment
• Excellent communicator and relationship builder; confident representing cutting-edge products, benefits and technology at senior levels
• Based in the Bay Area, with willingness to travel to other key technology areas in North America as well as to Lumai’s UK HQ

Compensation & Benefits

• Highly Competitive Salary: We are not saying our salary is a blank check, but let's just say it won't be a source of your stress
• Share Option Scheme: We are all in this together! We believe in shared success while we build the Lumai of tomorrow
• L&D Allowance: Stay at the forefront of your field with a $500 annual development budget
• Holidays: Enjoy some deserved "me time" with 25 days paid holiday (plus bank holidays) per year
• Socials: Be part of an inclusive community enjoying occasional all-company off-sites, lunches and socials

Interview Process

Our process is four stages. An initial conversation with our HR team to understand what you want from the role and what we want from it. Two commercial sessions with our Product and Leadership team. Finally, an HR-team session covering scope, terms, and any final questions. We aim to move fast on candidates we are excited about; expect roughly three to four weeks end to end.

Lumai is an equal opportunity employer. We make hiring decisions on merit, scope-fit, and the strength of the working relationship we expect to build with each hire. Applications welcome from candidates of any background. If you are not sure whether you are a fit, send a note anyway.