Head of Sovereign Partnerships

About this role

ABOUT MATTER INTELLIGENCE

Welcome to Matter, where we are building the future of vision AI: pairing a world-first sensor that sees molecular chemistry, temperature, and 3D shape with a Large World Model that will be the most powerful intelligence engine for the physical world. This system doesn't just see what something looks like; it understands everything from a single pixel. We call this Superintelligent Vision.

Our team has delivered technologies to Mars for NASA/JPL, designed advanced sensors for U.S. Defense, and built core infrastructure at OpenAI. We are now building the next generation of space- and airborne-based sensing systems.

ABOUT MATTER INTELLIGENCE

Matter Intelligence is developing advanced sensing and intelligence capabilities that help governments, operators, and autonomous systems better understand the physical world. Matter’s capabilities span aircraft- and space-based sensing, satellite systems, raw and processed data, and intelligence products derived from advanced spectral information.

Matter is building its government business around difficult national-security, defense, intelligence, civil-government, and commercial missions where better sensing and faster interpretation can produce meaningful operational advantage.

THE ROLE

Matter Intelligence is seeking a Lead of Asian Business Development to establish and lead the company’s government and strategic business-development activities across the Indo-Pacific.

The Lead will initially focus on Japan and South Korea with future opportunities across Australia, New Zealand, Singapore, Indonesia, Malaysia, and the Philippines. The role will be responsible for translating Matter’s technology into country-specific opportunities, establishing relationships with government and industry decision-makers, developing regional market-entry strategies, building qualified pipelines, and converting priority opportunities into funded programs and long-term customer relationships.

This is not solely a relationship-management or account-representation position. The Lead will own the complete regional business-development and capture lifecycle: market intelligence, account planning, customer discovery, partner development, opportunity qualification, capture strategy, proposal development, procurement navigation, negotiation, and contract conversion.

The successful candidate will combine deep knowledge of Indo-Pacific defense and government markets with the ability to operate effectively inside a technically ambitious, early-stage company. This person must be equally comfortable briefing senior government leaders, working through acquisition and contracting details, building partnerships with established aerospace and defense companies, and helping Matter’s technical teams shape products around real customer missions.

The Lead will work closely with Matter’s executive, engineering, product, legal, finance, and operations teams.

GEOGRAPHIC SCOPE

The Director will develop and execute country strategies across:

- Japan

- South Korea

- Australia

- New Zealand

- Singapore

- Indonesia

- Malaysia

- The Philippines

Additional Indo-Pacific markets may be added as Matter’s international business develops.

Japan and South Korea are expected to be initial priority markets because of their defense relationships, technological maturity, geospatial and remote-sensing demand, and ability to support regional expansion.

CORE RESPONSIBILITIES

REGIONAL STRATEGY AND MARKET DEVELOPMENT

- Develop and execute Matter’s government and strategic business-development strategy for the Indo-Pacific.

- Create differentiated market-entry plans for each priority country based on mission demand, acquisition structures, available budgets, local industrial requirements, and Matter’s technical readiness.

- Identify the defense, intelligence, civil-government, scientific, environmental, infrastructure, and commercial missions where Matter’s sensing and intelligence capabilities provide the strongest customer value.

- Prioritize markets and opportunities based on revenue potential, strategic importance, probability of capture, time to contract, technical fit, and required investment.

- Maintain a regional operating plan that defines target countries, priority accounts, opportunity pipelines, expected bookings, partner strategies, and resource requirements.

- Provide Matter’s leadership with clear recommendations regarding where the company should invest, partner, establish a local presence, or defer market entry.

GOVERNMENT AND NATIONAL-SECURITY BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT

- Establish relationships with defense ministries, armed services, intelligence organizations, civil-government agencies, space agencies, research organizations, and other relevant public-sector institutions.

- Develop trusted relationships with senior mission users, technical stakeholders, acquisition officials, procurement organizations, and executive decision-makers.

- Lead customer discovery to identify operational problems that can be addressed through Matter’s aircraft-based sensors, space-based sensors, satellite systems, data products, and intelligence capabilities.

- Educate customers on Matter’s technology while gathering specific mission, performance, security, integration, contracting, and deployment requirements.

- Develop opportunities for demonstrations, evaluations, pilot programs, research agreements, data purchases, sensor sales, satellite partnerships, and operational programs.

- Build demand before formal procurements are released and help shape requirements around problems Matter is uniquely positioned to solve.

- Navigate country-specific acquisition processes, budget cycles, tender procedures, contracting mechanisms, security requirements, and industrial-participation expectations.

- Represent Matter at senior-level government meetings, industry events, trade missions, exercises, demonstrations, conferences, and partner…