About the Role

Most internships put you on the sidelines. This one puts you at the center — where strategy is made, deals are closed, and decisions happen in real time.

You'll work directly alongside the founder in live meetings, pitches, and partnership conversations. This is a learning-by-doing role — you will observe, participate, and eventually pitch independently. If you're someone who enjoys the energy of a pitch, thinks in terms of relationships and value exchange, and wants to learn business development the way it actually works — this role will push you in the right ways.

What You Will Do

• Attend meetings with the founder and actively participate in partnership and BD conversations

• Learn and develop pitching skills through real deal exposure

• Support outreach and follow-ups with potential partners and clients

• Identify and qualify new partnership opportunities

• Gradually take ownership of pitching select partnerships independently

• Build and maintain a pipeline of potential partners using CRM tools

• Conduct market research to identify trends, competitors, and whitespace opportunities

• Draft partnership proposals, one-pagers, and presentation materials

• Support contract coordination and onboarding of new partners

• Represent the company at industry events, networking sessions, and conferences

What We're Looking For

• Confident communicator who is comfortable in a room with senior stakeholders

• Genuine passion for business, deals, and building relationships

• Quick adaptation learner — able to pick up new tools, contexts, and priorities fast

• Must be able to leverage the latest AI tools (ChatGPT, Claude, Perplexity, etc.) to get things done smarter and faster

• Startup experience or strong entrepreneurial mindset

• Coachable — willing to be trained and take feedback in real time

• Bonus: experience in sales, BD, or a client-facing role

Founding Mindset

• You think in terms of relationships built, not just meetings attended

• You ask "what does this partner actually need?" before every pitch

• You take ownership of follow-through — deals die in silence

• You balance boldness with listening

• You proactively surface new opportunities instead of waiting for leads to come to you

Bonus

• Experience in sales, BD, or account management

• Existing network in relevant industries

• Exposure to CRM tools (HubSpot, Salesforce, etc.)

• Experience in a startup or fast-paced environment

What Success Looks Like Within 4–6 weeks, you should be able to:

• Own outreach and follow-up for a set of partnership targets

• Contribute meaningfully in at least one live pitch with the founder

• Build and maintain an active pipeline with clear status tracking

• Draft a partnership proposal or one-pager independently

What You'll Get

• Work directly with the founder and get a front-row seat to how a startup is built

• Hands-on training in business development and partnerships

• A track record of real conversations and closed partnerships — not just busywork

• An opportunity to speed up your entrepreneurial journey

• A strong foundation for roles in BD, partnerships, or commercial strategy

Who This Is Not For

• If you're uncomfortable with rejection or ambiguity

• If you prefer back-office work over client-facing interactions

• If you wait for leads to come to you

• If you're looking for a low-intensity internship

Who Will Thrive Here

• Natural relationship builders who follow through

• People who are energized by pitching and persuasion

• High-agency individuals who treat every conversation as an opportunity

• Anyone who wants to learn BD the way it's actually done — in the field