Head of Business Development

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.

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, Photon Ventures and government grants, and is scaling rapidly to deploy the fastest optical compute currently available globally.

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 organization, 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.

• 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

Must-Have

• 10+ years of experience in semiconductors, data centers, or HPC,…