Job description

COMPANY OVERVIEW Deepgram is the leading platform underpinning the emerging trillion-dollar Voice AI economy, providing real-time APIs for speech-to-text (STT), text-to-speech (TTS), and building production-grade voice agents at scale. More than 200,000 developers and 1,300+ organizations build voice offerings that are ‘Powered by Deepgram’, including Twilio, Cloudflare, Sierra, Decagon, Vapi, Daily, Cresta, Granola, and Jack in the Box. Deepgram’s voice-native foundation models are accessed through cloud APIs or as self-hosted and on-premises software, with unmatched accuracy, low latency, and cost efficiency. Backed by a recent Series C led by leading global investors and strategic partners, Deepgram has processed over 50,000 years of audio and transcribed more than 1 trillion words. There is no organization in the world that understands voice better than Deepgram. COMPANY OPERATING RHYTHM At Deepgram, we expect an AI-first mindset—AI use and comfort aren’t optional, they’re core to how we operate, innovate, and measure performance. Every team member who works at Deepgram is expected to actively use and experiment with advanced AI tools, and even build your own into your everyday work. We measure how effectively AI is applied to deliver results, and consistent, creative use of the latest AI capabilities is key to success here. Candidates should be comfortable adopting new models and modes quickly, integrating AI into their workflows, and continuously pushing the boundaries of what these technologies can do. Additionally, we move at the pace of AI. Change is rapid, and you can expect your day-to-day work to evolve just as quickly. This may not be the right role if you’re not excited to experiment, adapt, think on your feet, and learn constantly, or if you’re seeking something highly prescriptive with a traditional 9-to-5. We're looking for an exceptional corporate lawyer to join our high-impact legal team and own the corporate function at a company operating at the frontier of voice AI. Deepgram is at an inflection point and our legal team has a real seat at the table. We're growing fast, the market is coming to voice, and the decisions we make now about how this company is structured, financed, and governed will set the pace for the next decade. You’ll be the lead lawyer on financing and M&A transactions, IPO readiness, corporate governance, and our international structure — and the person who takes the long view on all of it. This role is ideal for someone with genuine conviction that voice is the most consequential interface with AI, and who wants to build the corporate function of the company defining it. You'll report directly to our General Counsel and help establish a legal function that scales with a company on a steep trajectory, using AI as your default mode of working to set the standard for what AI-native legal work looks like. What You’ll Do - Direct corporate governance at Deepgram, building the habits and systems that help us move with clarity and confidence. - Drive the legal roadmap for IPO readiness — the compliance frameworks, future SEC reporting structures, and internal governance policies a public company runs on - Prepare for, structure and execute financings that support our ambitions - Lead our M&A legal work from conversation through integration to grow the company and widen what we're able to build - Partner with Finance and People on employee equity — compensation programs, cap table, secondaries — and mature the machinery behind how every employee shares in what they build here - Design the legal and business processes that let us scale globally with international subsidiaries - Track the worldwide regulatory developments that touch our corporate structure and governance, and translate them into positions the company can act on - Build the AI-native corporate practice at Deepgram with workflows and systems that scale our team's impact - Roll up your sleeves on the full breadth of legal issues that come with being a fast-growing startup You’ll Love This Role If You - Want to take a company through the whole arc — growth rounds, acquisitions, and the road to public — and want your fingerprints on how it gets built - Treat the cap table, the board, and the corporate structure as products with users, not paperwork - Get energized by being the first — building systems from scratch and establishing foundational practices - Are very practical in addressing legal issues and allergic to unnecessary friction - Have an abiding spirit of idealism about your chosen profession — you’re not just closing deals, you’re building something that matters - Have a point of view on what good lawyering looks like and a healthy sense of humor about everything else It’s Important To Us That You Have - JD from a U.S. accredited law school and 7–15 years of experience in legal practice (or more), in-house, at a firm, or both - Demonstrated strength in working with private, venture backed companies on a high growth trajectory, including on IPO readiness. - Fluency in the issues that matter most to us: IPO readiness, financings, M&A, governance, Board matters, employee equity, and international structures. A successful candidate will have depth of experience in at least some of these areas, and a willingness to learn the rest. - Recognize that law is about the grey areas, and are comfortable living in them, while giving clear and actionable advice. - Exceptional writing — precise, plain, and compelling It Would Be Great if You Had - Experience taking a company public as an in-house lawyer — you know what good looks like and how to build legal infrastructure that accelerates this roadmap - Hands-on experience with corporate and legal issues in the AI space We read cover letters! If you want to stand out, pick one: Tell us about a time your corporate work let the business do something it otherwise couldn't — what the constraint was, what you built, and what it opened up. Or tell us what fast-growing private companies most often get wrong about how they're structured or governed, and what good looks like instead. Notice: We're aware of individuals impersonating Deepgram recruiters. All legitimate Deepgram recruiting communication comes from an @deepgram.com deepgram.com email address. If you've received a message claiming to be Deepgram, please forward it to careers@deepgram.com.

Requirements

Must-haves

At Deepgram, we expect an AI-first mindset—AI use and comfort aren’t optional, they’re core to how we operate, innovate, and measure performance.
We're looking for an exceptional corporate lawyer to join our high-impact legal team and own the corporate function at a company operating at the frontier of voice AI.
This role is ideal for someone with genuine conviction that voice is the most consequential interface with AI, and who wants to build the corporate function of the company defining it.
What You’ll Do
Direct corporate governance at Deepgram, building the habits and systems that help us move with clarity and confidence.
Drive the legal roadmap for IPO readiness — the compliance frameworks, future SEC reporting structures, and internal governance policies a public company runs on
Prepare for, structure and execute financings that support our ambitions
Lead our M&A legal work from conversation through integration to grow the company and widen what we're able to build
Partner with Finance and People on employee equity — compensation programs, cap table, secondaries — and mature the machinery behind how every employee shares in what they build here
Design the legal and business processes that let us scale globally with international subsidiaries
Track the worldwide regulatory developments that touch our corporate structure and governance, and translate them into positions the company can act on
Build the AI-native corporate practice at Deepgram with workflows and systems that scale our team's impact
Roll up your sleeves on the full breadth of legal issues that come with being a fast-growing startup
You’ll Love This Role If You
Want to take a company through the whole arc — growth rounds, acquisitions, and the road to public — and want your fingerprints on how it gets built
Treat the cap table, the board, and the corporate structure as products with users, not paperwork
Get energized by being the first — building systems from scratch and establishing foundational practices
Are very practical in addressing legal issues and allergic to unnecessary friction
Have an abiding spirit of idealism about your chosen profession — you’re not just closing deals, you’re building something that matters
Have a point of view on what good lawyering looks like and a healthy sense of humor about everything else
It’s Important To Us That You Have
JD from a U.S. accredited law school and 7–15 years of experience in legal practice (or more), in-house, at a firm, or both
Demonstrated strength in working with private, venture backed companies on a high growth trajectory, including on IPO readiness.
Recognize that law is about the grey areas, and are comfortable living in them, while giving clear and actionable advice.

Nice-to-haves

None flagged.

Application prep

Use the role’s language and application details while tailoring your materials.

Keywords to mirror

airest

Platform: ashby
Effort: quick