Staff Brand Designer, Handshake AI

Handshake; San Francisco (CA); On-site; USD 172,000 - 215,000; Full time

Job summary

Handshake is seeking a Brand Designer to craft narratives and visual systems for their AI initiatives. This role involves designing compelling brand experiences and collaborating with cross-functional teams to ensure a consistent, impactful presence in the AI space. With a focus on creativity and innovation, this position is essential for translating complex ideas into accessible visuals that engage diverse audiences.

Benefits

Equity and ownership in a fast-growing company.

16 Weeks of paid parental leave for birth giving parents.

Comprehensive medical, dental, and vision policies.

Generous learning & development opportunities.

Monthly internet stipend and a brand new MacBook.

Free lunch provided 3x a week.

401k Match up to $1,200 per year.

Flexible time off policy and additional holiday time.

$500 home office stipend to create a productive workspace.

Family support for fertility and family forming expenses.

Qualifications

• 7+ years of experience in brand design with a strong portfolio.
• Expert in typography, color use, and composition.
• Experience with cross-functional collaboration and communication.

Responsibilities

• Develop high-quality brand design for AI initiatives.
• Guide cross-functional teams while crafting brand marketing content.
• Expand visual design systems for consistency across touchpoints.

Skills

Typography

Color

Composition

Communication

Art Direction

Collaboration

Education

7+ years of brand design experience

Outstanding brand design portfolio

Tools

Adobe Creative Suite

Figma

Job description

Everyone is welcome at Handshake. We know diverse teams build better products and we are committed to creating an inclusive culture built on a foundation of respect for all individuals. We strongly encourage candidates from non-traditional backgrounds, historically marginalized or underrepresented groups to apply.

Your impact

Handshake is expanding into AI research and development, shaping a world-class network of expert Fellows—PhDs, researchers, and subject matter specialists—who contribute to cutting-edge AI through specialized research, model evaluation, and domain-specific applications. We’re looking for a Brand Designer to craft compelling narratives and visual systems that bring this work to life, ensuring our brand resonates with both technical experts and broader audiences.

This is a unique opportunity to define how AI innovation is communicated, translating complex ideas into clear, engaging experiences that connect with researchers, industry leaders, and the next generation of talent.

This will be at our San Francisco location and this team is traditionally in the office five days a week.

Your role

• As a Staff Brand Designer on the Brand Design team, you will develop creative concepts and execute high-quality brand design for our owned channels, shaping how we communicate our growing AI initiatives. Your work will be informed by creative briefs, marketing insights, and a deep understanding of how to translate complex ideas into compelling visual narratives.
• You’ll operate autonomously as a designer while also guiding cross-functional teams, freelancers, agencies, and production partners. Working closely with the marketing team, you’ll help craft high-impact brand marketing content that elevates our positioning in the AI space.
• You’ll expand our visual design systems to create a holistic approach to typography, color, patterns, layouts, and imagery—ensuring consistency across every touchpoint. As an advocate for brand clarity and storytelling, you’ll play a key role in defining how Handshake’s AI initiatives connect with students, researchers, and industry leaders, while also mentoring and up-leveling the broader team.
  
  

Your Experience

• You have 7+ years of experience and an outstanding brand design portfolio with examples of having led art direction for integrated brand and marketing projects from business need to concepts to execution.
• You have led brand design teams in the day-to-day delivery of marketing creative with best-in-class quality and consistency.
• You have an impeccable eye for detail and a keen understanding of typography, color, and composition.
• You have experience building and managing strong relationships with marketers and cross-functional teams, and have a collaborative no ego, approach to working with others.
• You have strong communication and presentation skills. You can articulate concepts and ideas clearly, can engage in healthy critique, can accept directional feedback, and articulate the rationale behind your design decisions. You are organized and can collaborate with other creative partners.
• You have worked on a breadth of design projects, from campaigns to the web to social media, video, and everything in between.
• You are an expert in Adobe Creative Suite and Figma, with experience in art direction for photography and illustration.
• You have a working knowledge of motion graphics, interaction, and environmental design.
• Additional skills not required but a plus to have: video editing; illustration; and photography.
  
  

Compensation Range

• $172,000 - $215,000 + RSUs
  
  

For cash compensation, we set standard ranges for all U.S.-based roles based on function, level, and geographic location, benchmarked against similar stage growth companies. In order to be compliant with local legislation, as well as to provide greater transparency to candidates, we share salary ranges on all job postings regardless of desired hiring location. Final offer amounts are determined by multiple factors, including geographic location as well as candidate experience and expertise, and may vary from the amounts listed above.

About Us

Handshake is building the future of human data for AI.

We partner directly with top AI labs to power large language model (LLM) training and evaluation with high-quality, expert-generated data. As AI models become more sophisticated, the demand for specialized human input continues to grow—and Handshake is uniquely positioned to meet it. We power career platforms at 92% of the top U.S. universities, giving us direct access to verified expert talent across a wide range of domains.

Our AI team is rapidly building a new generation of human data products—from expert annotation platforms to AI interviewers and seamless payout infrastructure—all designed to accelerate research and improve model performance.

We’ve assembled a world-class team from YC, Notion, Scale, Coinbase, Palantir, and more, and we’re working directly with many of the world’s leading AI research labs. This is a unique opportunity to join a fast-growing team shaping the future of AI through better data, better tools, and better systems—for experts, by experts.

What We Offer

At Handshake, we'll give you the tools to feel healthy, happy and secure.

Benefits Below Apply To US Employees In Full-time Positions.

• Equity and ownership in a fast-growing company.
• 16 Weeks of paid parental leave for birth giving parents & 10 weeks of paid parental leave for non-birth giving parents.
• Comprehensive medical, dental, and vision policies including LGTBQ+ Coverage. We also provide resources for Mental Health Assistance, Employee Assistance Programs and counseling support.
• Generous learning & development opportunities and an annual $2,000 stipend for you to grow your skills and career.
• Financial coaching through Origin to help you through your financial journey.
• ???? Monthly internet stipend and a brand new MacBook to allow you to do your best work.
• Monthly commuter stipend for you to expense your travel to the office (for office-based employees).
• Free lunch provided 3x a week across all offices.
• ️ Free gym access in San Francisco office building.
• Referral bonus to reward you when you bring great talent to Handshake.
• Team outings throughout the year to stay connected to each other.
• 401k Match: Handshake offers a dollar-for-dollar match on 1% of deferred salary, up to a maximum of $1,200 per year.
• All full-time US-based Handshakers are eligible for our flexible time off policy to get out and see the world. In addition, we offer 13 standardized holidays, and 2 additional days of flexible holiday time off. Lastly, we have a Winter #ShakeBreak, a one-week period of Collective Time Off.
• Handshake offers $500 home office stipend for you to spend during your first 3 months to create a productive and comfortable workspace at home.
• Family support: Parental leave coaching and support provided by Parentaly. We partner with Maven Clinic to provide a lifetime coverage up to $15K for expenses related to fertility and family forming!
• Lifestyle Savings Account: We offer you an annual stipend of $500 to use for purchases such as fitness classes, gym memberships, work-from-home setup, and more.
  
  

Looking for more? Explore our mission, values and comprehensive US benefits at joinhandshake.com/careers.

Handshake is committed to providing reasonable accommodations in our recruitment processes for candidates with disabilities, sincerely held religious beliefs or other reasons protected by applicable laws. If you need assistance or reasonable accommodation, please let your recruiter know during initial communications.