Senior Security Leader (Director/Head of Security)

Articul8•Dublin, CA

About The Position

We are seeking a senior, hands-on security leader to own and scale security across our AI platform, infrastructure, people, and physical footprint. This role requires deep experience operating in fast-moving startup environments, strong judgment, and the ability to balance speed, trust, and risk in an AI-first company. You will work closely with executive leadership, engineering, product, legal, and operations to ensure security is embedded—not bolted on—while enabling rapid innovation and enterprise trust. This is not a checkbox or purely compliance role. This is a builder role for someone who understands the realities of Bay Area startups, AI development cycles, and modern threat landscapes.

Requirements

10+ years in security leadership roles (startup and/or high-growth environments strongly preferred)
Experience securing cloud-native, AI-driven, or data-intensive platforms
Proven ability to operate in ambiguity and build systems from scratch
Prior experience engaging with enterprise customers on security matters
Comfortable with startup pace, tradeoffs, and incomplete information
Pragmatic: knows when to push hard and when to unblock teams
Strong communicator who can translate technical risk into business impact
High trust, low ego, execution-oriented
Understands the AI ecosystem, venture-backed company dynamics, and rapid iteration cycles
Comfortable working cross-functionally with engineering, product, legal, and exec teams
Can scale security alongside company growth without slowing momentum

Responsibilities

Own and execute the company’s end-to-end security strategy (application, infrastructure, data, people, and physical security)
Serve as the primary security advisor to the executive team and Board
Establish security as a business enabler for enterprise customers, partnerships, and global expansion
Design and oversee security controls for AI systems, including:
Model access controls and isolation
Training data security and provenance
Inference security and abuse prevention
IP protection and model leakage prevention
Partner closely with engineering and product to integrate security into the SDLC without slowing innovation
Own cloud security posture (AWS/GCP/Azure as applicable)
Define and enforce best practices around:
Identity & access management
Secrets management
Data encryption, retention, and governance
Incident detection and response
Lead vulnerability management, penetration testing, and remediation efforts
Lead readiness and ongoing compliance for frameworks such as:
SOC 2, ISO 27001, customer security reviews
Manage third-party risk and vendor security assessments
Support customer security due diligence and enterprise procurement processes
Build a security-first culture appropriate for a startup environment (practical, not bureaucratic)
Develop lightweight but effective policies for:
Employee security practices
Device and access management
Remote and hybrid work
Advise on physical security and executive safety as needed
Own incident response planning and execution
Act as the calm, trusted leader during security incidents
Coordinate with legal, comms, and leadership during high-impact events