Head of AI & Analytics Partnerships, Loft Orbital
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Providing simple, fast, and reliable ways to deploy missions to low Earth orbit.
Open for applications
Providing simple, fast, and reliable ways to deploy missions to low Earth orbit.
201-500 employees
Open for applications
+ Equity options
More information about location
201-500 employees
Company mission
To make space simple for organizations that need Earth observation capabilities.
Role
Who you are
- The ideal candidate is a technical and strategic leader with deep experience forging high-impact, cross-functional partnerships in frontier-tech sectors
- 10–15+ years of experience in strategic partnerships and business development, ideally at the intersection of artificial intelligence, and space, aerospace, or defense technology
- Deep understanding of AI/ML technologies, data pipelines, and analytics infrastructure—with the ability to evaluate technical fit and integration opportunities
- Understanding of how to build partnership programs to facilitate on-boarding to Loft’s technology & certification of partners’ capability on our infrastructure
- Track record of closing and scaling strategic partnerships with enterprise tech and commercial analytics providers
- Strong executive presence and stakeholder management skills; able to work cross-functionally across technical, commercial, and government-facing teams
- Experience navigating regulated industries (e.g. defense, dual-use tech, space) and understanding of data sovereignty, compliance, and export control considerations
- Bachelor’s degree in engineering, computer science, or business. Master’s, MBA, or technical graduate degree preferred
Desirable
- Experience driving strategic partnerships with onboard processing or compute providers, across the space or defense sectors
What the job involves
- Loft Orbital is seeking a Head of AI & Analytics Partnerships to lead the development of a strategic partner ecosystem around AI, data analytics, and advanced software tooling
- This role will drive our efforts to integrate AI into mission operations, spacecraft autonomy, satellite tasking, and customer data delivery
- You will build partnerships with AI/ML startups, hyperscalers, analytics platforms, cloud providers, research labs, and government stakeholders to enhance Loft’s software-defined space infrastructure
- Define and execute Loft’s partnership strategy across the AI/ML landscape to support mission operations, customer data processing, and next-gen autonomy
- Identify, evaluate, and structure partnerships with companies and institutions in the AI, ML, cloud, edge computing, and analytics domains—ranging from enterprise to early-stage innovators
- Work closely with product, mission systems, and software teams to scope partner integrations that enhance Loft’s platform—such as ML-based scheduling, onboard inference, anomaly detection, and data analytics pipelines
- Collaborate with sales, marketing, and customer success to launch joint offerings with partners and bring AI-powered capabilities to customers across commercial and government verticals
- Engage with government and enterprise stakeholders to position Loft as a leader in AI-enabled space infrastructure
- Lead negotiations of partnership agreements, strategic alliances, licensing models, and collaborative research programs
Our take
The use of satellites was once confined to governmental services and communication giants, but recent innovations in satellite deployment have provided new opportunities for businesses to operate satellite fleets. Whilst this allows them to develop IoT products and provide rapid connectivity services to their customers, accessing the technology and resources needed to launch satellite buses is expensive, complex, and dependent on aerospace expertise.
Loft Orbital deploys space infrastructure as a service, providing businesses with rapid, reliable, and simplified access to space technologies. The company focuses on shielding its customers from the complexities of aerospace missions, allowing them to provide satellite-driven products to their customers without requiring expensive consultants, infrastructure, and inventories.
Whilst the company will face significant competition with satellite deployment giants such as SpaceX, Loft Orbital stands out with its turnkey approach, ultimately increasing accessibility and reducing the complexities associated with satellite-driven services. This has positioned it as an approachable partner for clients including Arabsat, which represents satellite monitoring for the entirety of the Arab League, and more recently, Esper Satellites which will be flying their four flagship payloads on Loft's buses.
Steph
Company Specialist at Welcome to the Jungle
Insights
42% employee growth in 12 months
Company
Funding (last 2 of 5 rounds)
Jan 2025
$201.3m
SERIES C
Sep 2021
$140m
SERIES B
Total funding: $358.2m
Company HQ
SoMa, San Francisco, CA
Leadership
Pierre-Damien Vaujour
(Co-Founder & CEO)Experience as Aerospace System Engineer for the NASA Ames Research Center's Commercial Partnerships and Mission Design Center. Head of Data Product and Business Development for Spire Global, Inc. from 2013 to 2016.
Alex Greenberg
(Co-Founder & COO)Experience as Engagement Manager for Avascent from 2010 to 2014. Worked in Business Development for Spire from 2014 to 2016.
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