Head of Commercial Counsel, San Francisco, CA

Our client, a high-growth enterprise AI company, is seeking a Head of Commercial Counsel to lead and expand its commercial legal function. Reporting directly to the President and Co-Founder, this role offers a path to grow into the General Counsel position as the company scales. The position is based in San Francisco, with a strong in-office culture requiring a minimum of three days per week on-site.

The Head of Commercial Counsel will own the full lifecycle of enterprise contract negotiations, including MSAs, SaaS agreements, DPAs, order forms, and partnership contracts with major banks, airlines, and financial services companies. Responsibilities include resolving legal blockers on complex, high-value deals, developing scalable contract templates and negotiation playbooks, managing and mentoring existing commercial counsel, advising on AI product-related legal considerations, partnering with Product and Engineering on data use obligations, and implementing contract management systems to support a growing sales pipeline.

The ideal candidate will have over 8 years of commercial legal experience, primarily in-house at a high-growth enterprise SaaS or technology company. A demonstrated track record in negotiating complex enterprise agreements with large, sophisticated counterparties, particularly in regulated industries such as financial services, healthcare, telecom, or travel, is essential. Strong commercial instincts, a player-coach mentality, and the ability to thrive in a fast-paced environment are also key. Prior experience managing or building a commercial legal team from scratch is preferred, and familiarity with AI-native companies and the EU AI Act is a plus.

The company offers a competitive base salary ranging from $325,000 to $340,000, along with a generous equity package. Final compensation will depend on experience and scope.