Director of Business Development – AI Factories

About Us

Axelera AI is not your regular deep-tech startup. We are creating the next-generation AI platform to support anyone who wants to help advancing humanity and improve the world around us.

In just four years, we have raised a total of $120 million and have built a world-class team of 220+ employees (including 49+ PhDs with more than 40,000 citations), both remotely from 17 different countries and with offices in Belgium, France, Switzerland, Italy, the UK, headquartered at the High Tech Campus in Eindhoven, Netherlands.

We have also launched our Metis AI Platform, which achieves a 3-5x increase in efficiency and performance, and have visibility into a strong business pipeline exceeding $100 million.

Our unwavering commitment to innovation has firmly established us as a global industry pioneer.

Are you up for the challenge?

Position Overview
We are seeking a visionary and commercially astute Director of Business Development to lead Axelera AI's growth in AI Factories and HPC across Europe. This strategic leadership role requires a blend of technical expertise, business acumen, and deep industry insight. You will define and execute our go-to-market strategy, build high-impact partnerships, and drive large-scale engagements with enterprise, public sector, and research institutions.

As the key driver of Axelera's expansion in this space, you will work closely with executive leadership and cross-functional teams to shape market strategy, influence product direction, and establish Axelera as the premier European leader in AI infrastructure solutions.

Key Responsibilities:

• Define and execute Axelera's business development strategy for AI Factories and HPC solutions across Europe.

• Build and nurture strategic relationships with government bodies, enterprise customers, hyperscalers, and research institutions.

• Lead complex commercial engagements, including large-scale partnerships, strategic alliances, and public tenders.

• Influence and align with Product, Software, and Marketing teams to ensure our offerings anticipate and meet evolving market needs.

• Serve as a strategic advisor to the executive team on market trends, customer insights, and partnership opportunities.

• Oversee the successful commercialization and deployment of AI Factory initiatives from concept to scale.

• Represent Axelera AI as an industry thought leader at conferences, forums, and strategic customer engagements across Europe.

Qualifications:

• Proven track record of leadership in business development, strategic partnerships, or solution sales within the HPC, AI infrastructure, or data center ecosystem.

• Deep technical understanding of HPC architectures, data center infrastructure, and AI workloads.

• Experience managing large-scale, complex sales cycles and public sector tenders.

• Background in companies such as Dell, HPE, NVIDIA, or similar is highly desirable.

• Exceptional executive communication, negotiation, and stakeholder management skills.

• Fluent in English; additional European languages are an advantage.

• Willingness to travel extensively across Europe.

What we offer

This is your chance to shape and be part of a dynamic, fast-growing, international organization. We offer an attractive compensation package, including a pension plan, extensive employee insurances and the option to get company shares.

An open culture that supports creativity and continual innovation is awaiting you. Collaborative ownership and freedom with responsibility is characteristic for the way we act and work as a team.

At Axelera AI, we wholeheartedly embrace equal opportunity and hold diversity in the highest regard. Our steadfast commitment is to cultivate a warm and inclusive environment that empowers and celebrates every member of our team. We welcome applicants from all backgrounds to join us in shaping the future of AI.