Head of Legal
Tokyo-based frontier AI R&D company that develops nature-inspired AI research and commercial AI products for enterprises and users.
Funding history
About Sakana AI K.K.
Sakana AI develops frontier AI research inspired by collective intelligence and self-evolution, alongside AI products and applied solutions for enterprises and Japan’s public sector.
Skills
Candidate Availability
Required and preferred rules are kept separate and reflect the wording in the original posting.
About the Role
You will lead the drafting, review, and negotiation of commercial agreements, including English-language contracts. You will advise on deal structures, corporate governance, fundraising, intellectual property, data, open-source licensing, compliance, regulatory developments, disputes, and outside counsel. You will manage legal members and standardize legal processes.
Requirements
- 5+ years of corporate legal experience in-house or at a law firm
- Experience independently drafting, reviewing, and negotiating contracts, including English-language contracts
- Ability to explain legal risk concretely and present workable options to business teams
- Native-level Japanese
- English proficiency for contract work and day-to-day business communication
- Interest in using generative AI, LLMs, and AI agents in legal work
Responsibilities
- Lead drafting, review, and negotiation of customer, partner, vendor, and contractor contracts, including English-language agreements
- Advise business teams on legal considerations during deal structuring
- Handle shareholder and board meeting operations, corporate registrations, capital policy, and fundraising legal matters
- Establish policies for research outputs, models, data, and open-source software licenses
- Drive patent and trademark strategy with outside counsel
- Build and operate compliance programs covering internal policies, personal data protection, and export and security trade control
- Track AI-related regulations and translate them into practical business guidance
- Manage disputes, external inquiries, and outside counsel
- Manage legal team members and improve legal quality and productivity
- Standardize contract and legal processes and improve efficiency through generative AI
Hiring Process
Find a role; email careers@sakana.ai with a brief introduction and the role; submit the Google Form with a CV and English cover letter.