Applied AI, Startup Partnerships

Anthropic•San Francisco, CA

49d•Hybrid

About The Position

As a Startup Partnerships Solutions Architect on the Applied AI team at Anthropic, you will be the technical face of Claude to the founder and VC community. You will enable early-stage companies to build successfully with Claude, drive startup activations through strategic engagement with VC-backed startups, and represent Anthropic's technical vision at key ecosystem events. This role combines deep technical expertise with a builder-first mindset to accelerate adoption across the startup landscape.

Requirements

Builder credibility: 4+ years experience, including time as a technical founder, and software engineer. You speak the language of builders and understand the constraints of early-stage companies.
Outstanding communication and presentation skills: Proven ability to deliver compelling technical presentations to audiences ranging from 10 to 10,000+. Comfortable with fireside chats, panel discussions, workshops, and hands-on technical sessions. Can translate complex AI concepts into actionable insights for builders.
Technical depth and breadth: Strong understanding of LLMs, APIs, and modern development practices, with the ability to go deep on technical architectures while also maintaining expertise across a wide product surface area. You're the person founders want to talk to about how to build.
Startup ecosystem fluency: Deep understanding of VC dynamics, accelerator programs, portfolio strategies, and the unique needs of early-stage companies.
Generalist mindset: Intellectual curiosity and ability to rapidly learn new product capabilities. You thrive on being the go-to technical expert across a broad portfolio rather than specializing in one area.
Startup GTM experience: Prior experience supporting startup ecosystems through developer relations, solutions architecture, technical partnerships, or similar roles. Understanding of how to drive activations and adoption metrics.
Passion for AI and Anthropic's mission: Genuine excitement about making safe, beneficial AI accessible to builders who are shaping the future. You believe in empowering the next generation of AI-native startups.
We require at least a Bachelor's degree in a related field or equivalent experience.

Nice To Haves

Bonus points if you have an existing network in the founder or VC community.

Responsibilities

Startup Ecosystem Enablement: Serve as the primary technical resource for the Startup Partnerships team, supporting founder-focused programs including Founder Days at HQ, VC portfolio presentations (Sequoia, General Catalyst, YC, etc.), and strategic startup workshops. Build technical credibility within the founder community by speaking their language and understanding their build patterns.
Technical Event Leadership: Lead workshops, deliver technical talks, and participate in fireside chats at high-profile startup events (e.g., Slush, YC Demo Days, accelerator programs). Represent Anthropic's technical vision to audiences of 100-13,000+ founders and builders, competing for mindshare against other frontier AI labs.
Portfolio Acceleration: Partner with VCs and startup programs to drive penetration and activation metrics across their portfolios. Develop scalable enablement content including pre-built decks, technical guides, and reference architectures tailored for early-stage companies moving fast with limited resources.
Founder Success & Deal Support: Act as a technical advisor to high-potential startups, helping them architect solutions, navigate product decisions, and accelerate from concept to $500+ in lifetime API spend. Unblock technical challenges that could prevent activation or expansion.
Product Feedback & Market Intelligence: Gather insights on how startups are building with Claude, identify emerging use cases and deployment patterns in the early-stage ecosystem, and deliver feedback to product and research teams to inform roadmap and go-to-market strategy.
Cross-Portfolio Expertise: Maintain deep knowledge across Anthropic's entire product portfolio, roadmap, and company vision to serve as a "generalist athlete" who can speak credibly about any Claude capability, from API features to Claude Code to emerging capabilities.