Are you passionate about building ecosystem partnerships that bring the next generation of AI infrastructure to market?
We are seeking a highly technical and experienced Principal Ecosystem Partner Manager to drive joint business growth, product adoption, and ecosystem innovation with leading CPU platform providers (x86 and Arm), ODMs, OEMs, and system integrators. This role owns strategic partner engagement end to end, from roadmap alignment and interoperability through agreements and co-marketing, and leads solutions and partner marketing for Astera Labs' rack-scale solutions. It works closely with Astera Labs sales, field applications engineering (FAE), product management, engineering, and corporate marketing teams.
This is a high-visibility role with regular interaction with executive leadership at Astera Labs and at our partners, and requires a strong blend of technical depth, market insight, and leadership. The ideal candidate has deep experience in server, AI, and cloud infrastructure, excels at cross-functional collaboration, and can translate complex technologies into compelling rack-scale solutions built on Astera Labs' Intelligent Connectivity Platform.
This position is based at Astera Labs' headquarters in San Jose, California, and requires in-person presence five days a week, with regular travel to partner sites, customer meetings, and industry events.
Key Responsibilities
Own strategic relationships with key CPU platform partners (x86 and Arm, including emerging Arm-based platform providers), ODMs, OEMs, and system integrators, including monthly executive syncs, quarterly roadmap exchanges, and joint business planning
Drive technology roadmap alignment to place Astera Labs products in partner reference designs and emerging server and AI platforms
Coordinate interoperability and joint validation programs with partners and Astera Labs engineering, from early silicon through production
Collaborate with partners on joint reference architectures and rack-scale solutions built on Astera Labs' Intelligent Connectivity Platform, including emerging AI workloads such as agentic inference
Lead solutions and partner marketing for rack-scale solution kits with ODM and OEM partners, including solution briefs, joint go-to-market plans, launch content, and partner programs
Negotiate and close partner agreements, such as supplier, qualified vendor, and co-marketing agreements, with legal, sales, and business teams
Plan and execute co-marketing programs with partners, including joint announcements, demos, events, case studies, and partner content
Own the customer-facing presentations, including the company and portfolio overview decks, solution and partner decks, and event-specific decks, and keep them current across product groups
Act as the Voice of the Partner, gathering partner and customer insights and competitive intelligence to influence product direction, platform strategy, and go-to-market execution
Develop sales enablement on partner platforms and run regular training sessions with customer-facing teams
Serve as an ecosystem evangelist internally and externally, representing Astera Labs at industry events, partner forums, conferences, and press/analyst engagements
Track partner engagement and ecosystem-influenced design wins, and report progress to leadership
Qualifications
Bachelor's degree in Engineering or a related field; MBA preferred
7+ years of experience in product-focused, customer- or partner-facing roles within the semiconductor or data center infrastructure industry
Understanding of PCIe, CXL, Ethernet, and/or UALink technologies and server/CPU platform architectures in AI and cloud infrastructure
Established network across CPU, server platform, ODM, OEM, and system integrator ecosystems
Previous experience in Ecosystem Partnerships, Solutions or Partner Marketing, Business Development, Product Marketing, Product Management, or similar roles
Experience running multi-workstream partner programs, including joint interoperability, reference designs, and executive syncs
Strong strategic thinking and analytical skills, with the ability to translate market insights into actionable partner and account strategies
Excellent communication and presentation skills, including building executive and customer-facing presentations that explain complex technical concepts clearly
Proven ability to collaborate effectively with cross-functional teams and drive consensus in a fast-paced, dynamic environment
Results-oriented mindset with a focus on driving measurable impact and achieving business objectives
Experience negotiating and executing partner agreements
Willingness to travel up to approximately 25% for partner/customer meetings, company training, industry events, and conferences
Salary range is $160,000 to $200,000 depending on experience, level, and business need. This role may be eligible for discretionary bonus, incentives and benefits.
We know that creativity and innovation happen more often when teams include diverse ideas, backgrounds, and experiences, and we actively encourage everyone with relevant experience to apply, including people of color, LGBTQ+ and non-binary people, veterans, parents, and individuals with disabilities.
