Principal Builder
Mountain View · USD 230,000-275,000 / year · Full-time · Onsite · Posted Sep 28, 2026
At a glance
- Employment
- Full-time
- Workplace
- Onsite
- Location
- Mountain View
- Salary
- USD 230,000-275,000 / year
About the role
- The Principal Builder works with commercial partners and elite founders to identify, shape, and validate new company ideas.
- This role involves building business cases, recruiting founders, and providing product and go-to-market guidance during a 12-week build phase.
- The position requires a technically deep individual who can evaluate market opportunities and influence the direction of AI Fund's portfolio companies.
Responsibilities
- Identify, shape, and validate new company ideas with commercial partners and founders.
- Develop business cases including market sizing, business models, and go-to-market plans.
- Write clear theses for potential companies.
- Evaluate and decide which ideas to pursue based on market opportunity and AI applicability.
- Recruit founders and Engineers in Residence to lead company builds.
- Provide product, user, and go-to-market guidance during the 12-week build process.
- Formulate investment recommendations for AI Fund at the end of the build phase.
- Support AI Fund partners on follow-on investment and portfolio support.
Requirements
- Technical ability and understanding of frontier AI.
- Hands-on experience coding with AI.
- Experience as an engineer, product manager, product designer, or founder, including 0-to-1 work.
- Track record of working with top talent, including elite founders and senior executives.
- Ability to communicate with rigor and persuade through influence.
- STEM or research degree from a top research university or equivalent background.
- Strong business judgment.
Skills
- Frontier AI
- Coding
- Market Sizing
