# Strategic Project Lead (Financial Services)

> Coastal Wave Recruiting · San Francisco, United States · Full-time · Posted 2026-06-02

**Salary:** USD 150,000–225,000

**Workplace:** on_site

**Department:** Product / Project Management

## Description

Our client, an AI-driven financial services startup, is seeking a **Strategic Project Lead** to join its early team.

This is a unique opportunity to work at the intersection of finance and frontier AI—helping build reinforcement learning environments that train next-generation AI models for real-world financial workflows. You'll partner directly with leading AI labs and play a critical role on a lean, high-impact team preparing for its next stage of growth.

**What You'll Do**

-   Own day-to-day delivery and quality of training environments, managing contractors and running experiments
-   Operate as a de facto product lead, shaping features and partnering with engineering on product direction
-   Manage customer relationships, translating requirements into high-quality deliverables
-   Build operational systems from scratch, including documentation, quality standards, and scalable processes
-   Contribute to strategic and financial planning, including pricing, revenue modeling, and project economics

## Requirements

-   **1–3 years of experience in investment banking, private equity, hedge funds, or top-tier consulting (finance-focused)**
-   **Analyst/Associate at IB,​ PE,​ or hedge fund**
-   Strong understanding of financial services and ability to evaluate models and deliverables
-   Proven ownership of projects or workstreams in high-performance environments
-   Entrepreneurial mindset, with evidence of side projects or building something independently
-   Hands-on experience experimenting with AI tools (e.g., ChatGPT, Claude, Cursor)
-   Strong academic background; technical or CS exposure is a plus

## Benefits

Salary & Equity 

Additional variable compensation is possible.

Visa sponsorship & Relocation

## Apply

[Apply at Coastal Wave Recruiting](https://apply.workable.com/coastal-wave-recruiting/j/1DB6486102/apply)

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