Handshake was founded on a simple belief that everyone deserves a path to a great career, regardless of where they went to school or who they know. Today, we power 25 million job seekers, 1 million+ employers, and 1,600 educational institutions.
In 2025, we started Handshake AI and built the fastest-growing AI data business in history. We work directly with frontier AI lab researchers to create evaluations, publish benchmarks, and push the boundary of data. We’ve grown from $0 to ~$1B run rate and pay ~$60M to over 30K individuals every month.
Why join Handshake now:
Shape how every career evolves in the AI economy, at global scale, with impact your friends, family and peers can see and feel
Partner hand-in-hand with world-class AI labs, Fortune 500 partners and the world’s top educational institutions
Work together with engineers, scientists, operators, and more from Palantir, Meta, Scale AI, and former YC founders
Build a massive, fast-growing business with billions in revenue
About Handshake AI
Human data is the core infrastructure to AI advancement. Frontier AI labs currently improve model capabilities with various data-intensive post-training techniques. We believe that data spend for AI training will increase by 3-5x in the next few years and continue for much longer as models take on new domains. Handshake AI supports all of the frontier AI labs, working on their most complex data at the largest scale.
The RoleAs Handshake AI rapidly expands in the generative AI space, we’re looking for a Growth Operations Lead to architect and scale strategic growth initiatives that drive revenue, product adoption, and long-term market leadership. This role is both hands-on and highly strategic - you’ll lead cross-functional efforts to define and execute our growth roadmap. Your work will directly shape how students, employers, and institutions experience our next generation of AI-driven products.
Own and lead critical growth initiatives from strategy through execution, collaborating deeply with teams across Product, Engineering, Operations, and Go-to-Market.
Design and implement scalable growth systems, pipelines, and processes tailored to evolving customer needs and market demands.
Oversee and optimize the entire growth funnel - from acquisition to activation - for key generative AI products and experiments.
Synthesize insights across product usage, market dynamics, and operational performance to surface opportunities and drive prioritization.
Partner closely with Handshake AI’s leadership to shape strategic direction, define success metrics, and drive accountability across growth workstreams.
Solve ambiguous, high-priority challenges with a structured, data-driven approach - helping define what “great” looks like as we scale new products and markets.
3-4+ years of experience in growth, product, or operations.
A background in strategy- and operations-heavy environments such as marketplaces, logistics, or on-demand services.
Experience in Business Operations, Strategy, or Growth teams at a tech company.
Strong technical acumen, including the ability to perform data analysis using SQL or Python.
Educational or professional background in Business Intelligence, Data Analytics, or related fields, with a strong grasp of turning data into actionable insights.
Excellent analytical and problem-solving skills, with a data-first approach to testing and decision-making.
Familiarity with BI tools and methodologies (e.g., dashboards, KPI tracking, data visualization) to support operational and strategic decisions.
An entrepreneurial mindset—comfortable with ambiguity, fast execution, and building from zero to one.
Handshake delivers benefits that help you feel supported and thrive at work and in life.
The below benefits are for full-time US employees.
🎯 Ownership: Equity in a fast-growing company
💰 Financial Wellness: 401(k) match, competitive compensation, financial coaching
🍼 Family Support: Paid parental leave, fertility benefits, parental coaching
💝 Wellbeing: Medical, dental, and vision, mental health support, $500 wellness stipend
📚 Growth: $2,000 learning stipend, ongoing development
💻 Remote & Office: Internet, commuting, and free lunch/gym in our SF office
🏝 Time Off: Flexible PTO, 15 holidays + 2 flex days
🤝 Connection: Team outings & referral bonuses
Explore our mission, values, and comprehensive US benefits at joinhandshake.com/careers.
Handshake Compensation & Benefits Highlights
The following summarizes recurring compensation and benefits themes identified from responses generated by popular LLMs to common candidate questions about Handshake and has not been reviewed or approved by Handshake.
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Leave & Time Off Breadth — Time-off practices include flexible/unlimited PTO, companywide recharge weeks in summer and winter, plus additional volunteer and personal holiday time. Feedback suggests sabbaticals and coordinated breaks help people actually use rest time.
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Parental & Family Support — Parental leave is described as extended for primary and secondary caregivers, and family-oriented policies are highlighted. Fertility and family-support resources are referenced in public materials.
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Healthcare Strength — Core coverage spans medical, dental, and vision, with added mental-health resources and wellness programming. Feedback suggests these supports contribute meaningfully to overall wellbeing.
Handshake Insights
What We Do
Handshake is the #1 place to launch a career with no connections, experience, or luck required. The platform connects up-and-coming talent with 650,000+ employers - from Fortune 500 companies like Google, Nike, and Target to thousands of public school districts, healthcare systems, and nonprofits. Earlier this year, we announced our $200M Series F funding round. This Series F fundraise and new valuation of $3.5B will fuel Handshake’s next phase of growth and propel our mission to help more people start, restart, and jumpstart their careers.
Why Work With Us
How someone builds their career is foundational. We believe in working with the higher education community to help students build meaningful careers. We are at the nexus of universities, students and employers— and we’re able to connect the very best pieces of each side. We’re proud to create a community where students can be more successful.
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