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Director, Strategic Partnerships & Alliances, Chemical Simulation

SandboxAQ· AI Simulation
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Remote$196k - $294kFull-timePosted 4d ago

About the role

Director role to build and execute partnership strategy for semiconductor-materials programs, translating scientific capabilities into strategic alliances, managing end-to-end deal lifecycle and ensuring government-funded and commercial engagements.

Responsibilities

  • Develop and execute a strategic-partnerships and alliances strategy across semiconductor-critical materials, including catalysis, process chemicals, batteries, magnets, and PFAS alternatives.
  • Identify, qualify, and prioritize potential partners across the value chain, including chemical and materials companies, semiconductor manufacturers, equipment providers, experimental laboratories, manufacturers, national laboratories, and other strategic ecosystem participants with an urgency to meet government-set milestones/timelines.
  • Build trusted relationships with senior executives, R&D leaders, technical experts, procurement teams, and business-development stakeholders at prospective partner organizations.
  • Translate SandboxAQ’s scientific capabilities, materials-discovery workflows, and commercial objectives into compelling partner-specific value propositions and engagement strategies.
  • Lead partnership development end-to-end, from first conversation through diligence, business-case development, negotiation, approval, launch, and expansion including structuring and negotiating the full range of agreements (NDAs, MOUs, LOIs, joint development and co-development agreements, statements of work, validation agreements, and licensing structures) in partnership with Legal and Finance.
  • Develop clear key for partner roles, technical scope, milestones, success criteria, data exchange, validation responsibilities, economics, intellectual-property treatment, publication rights, exclusivity, field of use, and commercialization pathways.
  • Ensure that proposed partnerships align with applicable government-program, export-control, confidentiality, intellectual-property, and compliance requirements; escalate issues early and bring the right internal stakeholders into the decision process.
  • Coordinate cross-functional deal teams and maintain a disciplined operating cadence across technical, commercial, legal, financial, and executive workstreams in order to convert technical proof points and partner-validation results into commercial opportunities, follow-on agreements, product requirements, and durable ecosystem relationships.
  • Represent SandboxAQ at customer meetings, industry events, conferences, and other forums, communicating credibly with both technical and executive audiences.

Qualifications

  • 10+ years of experience in strategic partnerships, business development, alliances, licensing, corporate development, or a related commercial role in a technical industry.
  • Demonstrated success sourcing, developing, negotiating, and closing complex multi-party partnerships, preferably involving R&D, technology licensing, government funding, co-development, or technical validation.
  • Strong contract and deal-structuring experience, including the ability to work effectively with Legal on intellectual property, data rights, confidentiality, economics, milestones, liability, exclusivity, and commercialization terms.
  • Experience translating complex technical capabilities into business value, commercial proposals, and executive-level decisions.
  • Experience managing long-cycle enterprise or industrial sales and partnership processes with multiple decision makers and significant technical diligence.
  • Strong understanding of industrial materials, chemicals, semiconductors, advanced manufacturing, scientific software, or a closely related domain.
  • Excellent written, verbal, and executive communication skills, with the ability to earn trust across scientists, engineers, lawyers, finance leaders, executives, and external partners.
  • Demonstrated ability to operate independently in a high-growth, ambiguous environment and to create structure where a repeatable playbook does not yet exist.
  • Bachelor’s degree in business, engineering, chemistry, materials science, or a related field; advanced degree or equivalent technical experience preferred.
  • Willingness to travel regularly for partner meetings, customer engagements, conferences, and other business-development activities.

Skills

Required:Strategic partnerships developmentContract negotiation & deal structuring

Benefits

  • Compensation: Competitive base salary commensurate with experience, plus equity and performance-based incentives.
  • Benefits: Comprehensive health, dental, and vision insurance; 401(k) with company match; generous parental leave.
  • Work-Life Balance: Flexible hybrid work arrangements, generous PTO, and a culture that respects focus time and recovery.
  • Career Development: Direct exposure to frontier AI and materials-science programs, senior scientific and executive leadership, strategic industrial partners, and federally funded R&D initiatives.
Last updated Oct 21, 2026. Interested? Apply on the company site.

About SandboxAQ

Transforming the World with AI and Advanced Computing

SandboxAQ leverages the compound effects of AI and advanced computing to address some of the biggest challenges impacting society. SandboxAQ technologies include AI simulation, cryptography management for cybersecurity, and AI sensing for global organizations.

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