Job Description
About Tiki AI Tiki AI builds the infrastructure that teaches frontier AGI systems how to think, not just predict. We turn top-tier human expertise in STEM, code, and other domains into high-signal training data through cognitive extraction, going far beyond basic labeling. With eight years of profitable operations and embedded partnerships with leading frontier labs, we help stabilize complex reasoning and fix long-horizon agent failures in production-scale systems. We are expanding our US presence and building the go-to-market infrastructure to support it. To do that effectively, we need to understand exactly how our target customers make decisions about AI data vendors before we walk into a single conversation. About The Role You have been on the other side of this conversation. You have evaluated AI data vendors, navigated procurement processes at a frontier AI lab or large enterprise AI organization, and made or influenced decisions about which data partners get access and which do not. We are not asking you to buy data for us. We are asking you to teach us how our buyers think. As our Strategic Advisor, AI Go-To-Market, you will act as an internal buyer in residence. You will educate our sales and marketing teams on how procurement actually works at our target accounts, map the evaluation criteria and compliance hurdles our buyers use to score vendors, and help us build the messaging, playbooks, and deal support materials that reflect how decisions are actually made, not how we assume they are made. This is a true consulting engagement. You define your availability, work on outcomes, and bring your expertise to bear on a specific and bounded problem. There is no expectation of exclusivity. What You Will Do Internal education Train our sales and revenue teams on the AI data procurement lifecycle at frontier labs and enterprise AI organizations. Teach them how data scientists, ML engineers, and procurement officers build business cases, evaluate vendors, and make purchasing decisions. Make the invisible visible. Process mapping Deconstruct the standard RFP and RFI processes used by target customers for AI training data, RLHF, and data annotation services. Document the specific stages, stakeholders, and decision criteria involved so our team is not guessing. Sales strategy and enablement Partner with sales leadership to develop playbooks, objection-handling guides, and outreach messaging that speak directly to the pain points of data buyers. Help us move from generic positioning to positioning that lands with the specific people we are trying to reach. Vendor evaluation insights Help our product and marketing teams understand the specific metrics, quality guarantees, and compliance standards that buyers use to score and rank vendors. Surface the criteria that are table stakes versus the ones that are actually differentiating. Deal support On high-value opportunities, make yourself available as a strategic advisor. This may occasionally include joining sales conversations to speak peer-to-peer with procurement teams or ML technical leads, at your discretion and within agreed scope. What We Are Looking For You have direct experience on the buying side of AI data procurement. Specifically: 2 or more years of direct involvement in buying, sourcing, or evaluating AI training data, data annotation services, or related ML infrastructure at a frontier AI lab, large technology company, or enterprise AI organization Deep familiarity with enterprise procurement processes including RFPs, proof-of-concept evaluations, vendor risk assessments, and contract negotiations Strong foundational knowledge of how AI and ML models are trained and why data quality, diversity, and formatting matter to technical buyers The ability to translate complex procurement and technical processes into clear, actionable guidance for sales and marketing teams Comfort operating as an independent advisor with multiple clients and no requirement for exclusivity Direct experience at OpenAI, Anthropic, Google DeepMind, or a comparable frontier AI organization is strongly preferred. Engagement Terms This is a 1099 independent consulting engagement. You are expected to operate as an independent business, work with multiple clients, and define your own working schedule. Tiki AI does not direct how the work gets done, only what outcomes are expected. Specific engagement scope, deliverables, and retainer terms will be defined in a consulting agreement prior to the start of work. Engagement Type: Independent consulting engagement (1099). Scope, hours, and deliverables defined by mutual agreement. Structured as an ongoing advisory retainer. Location: Remote, with occasional on-site availability in San Francisco preferred. Compen