Director, Strategic AI Partnerships

Who We Are: At Bandwidth, we shape how the world connects. We're the global communications software company and Tier 1 network operator with global reach. The voice, messaging, and emergency services infrastructure behind the brands and apps you use every day. Because we own the network we build on, the problems you'll solve here are bigger, more complex, and more impactful. And as communications shifts to AI, we're the infrastructure layer making it possible. We call ourselves BANDmates because building something this big takes collaboration, different perspectives, and the freedom to bring your authentic self to the table. We're experts who speak like humans. Ready to build what's next? #JoinTheBand What We Are Looking For: Bandwidth is seeking a Director of AI Strategic Partnerships & Data Licensing to lead our entry into the Generative AI and Large Language Model (LLM) ecosystem. Reporting directly to the Chief Strategy Officer (CSO), this is a high-impact, "frontier" role responsible for establishing Bandwidth as the essential voice layer for the world’s most sophisticated AI companies. Unlike a traditional sales role, your success will be measured by the breadth and depth of formalized partnerships you secure with major AI players. You will be the bridge between Bandwidth’s global network and the next generation of AI-driven voice applications, while simultaneously architecting our first-ever voice data licensing program. What You'll Do: Market Evangelism: Identify and penetrate "Big AI" accounts (OpenAI, Anthropic, Google, Meta, etc.) and emerging innovators in the Real-time Voice/LLM space to position Bandwidth as the premier platform for high-scale, low-latency voice integration. Data Strategy & Licensing: Design and execute the framework for licensing Bandwidth’s unique voice data assets for AI training, ensuring compliance, ethical standards, and high commercial value. Strategic Relationship Management: Navigate complex organizational structures to build "at-level" partnerships with C-suite executives, Product Leads, and Head of Research counterparts. Product-Market Feedback Loop: Act as the "voice of the AI customer" internally. Gather technical requirements and friction points to collaborate with Product and Engineering teams on rapid iterations of our AI feature set. Ecosystem Mapping: Stay at the bleeding edge of AI trends (Text-to-Speech, Speech-to-Text, and Real-time Voice) to identify new areas where Bandwidth can create "moats." Market Making: Define the "Voice for AI" category for Bandwidth. This includes creating partnership structures that prioritize technical integration and long-term ecosystem alignment over short-term transaction volume. KPIs in this role include: Primary: Number of formalized partnerships and technical integrations secured with Tier-1 and Tier-2 AI players. Secondary: Revenue generated through data licensing and platform usage. Strategic: Quality of product feedback loops and successful internal iteration on AI-specific features. Working Conditions: Works in a normal office environment with occasional travel required. Location Agnostic: Open to remote candidates, however relatively frequent travel to Bandwidth HQ in Raleigh will be required as well as the ability to work effectively in a distributed environment, maintaining high visibility with the CSO and internal product teams regardless of time zone. What You Need: Education: Bachelor degree Experience: 10+ years in Business Development, Strategic Partnerships, or Product Management within the SaaS, Cloud Infrastructure, or AI sectors. Experience at a "frontier" tech company or within a high-growth AI/SaaS environment is critical. Knowledge: A deep, intuitive understanding of the AI stack, including how LLMs use data and the requirements for real-time voice synthesis/recognition. Skills: The "Founding" Mindset: Proven track record of taking a "zero-to-one" product or vertical to market. You must be comfortable with ambiguity and b…