Open as of August 7, 2026

Lead Counsel, IP

flyziplineSouth San Francisco, California, USA

Why you can apply for this one

Healthcare benefits are included.

Job description

About Zipline

Zipline is the world’s largest and most experienced drone delivery service. We are on a mission to serve all humans equally by ensuring access to food, medicine and essential goods anytime, anywhere. We design, build, and operate the world’s largest autonomous logistics system, delivering critical supplies quickly and reliably. Today, Zipline operates on four continents, makes a delivery somewhere in the world every 30 seconds, and has completed millions of deliveries to date, including blood, vaccines, medical supplies, food, and retail products.

Our customers include the world’s largest and most prominent healthcare systems, governments, retailers, restaurants and global businesses who rely on us to save lives, reduce emissions, increase economic opportunity, and provide delivery from point A to point B as fast as possible. The drone is only 15% of what we’ve built to enable seamless, reliable, global operations.

Our system strengthens supply chains, reduces congestion, and gives people time back. With more than 140 million commercial autonomous miles safely flown, Zipline is redefining access to healthcare, consumer products, and food across the globe.

We operate at a global scale and are looking for practical problem solvers who thrive on real-world challenges and rapid growth. Our team is motivated by building systems that have a direct, meaningful impact on people’s lives and by scaling the future of logistics. We are seeking people who sculpt from first principles, enjoy facing adversity, and can do the impossible at record breaking speeds.

About You and The Role

Do you love patents? Are you excited by the opportunity to develop the IP portfolio of one of the most innovative companies in a new industry? Do you believe that a great IP strategy does not come from patent harvesting, has nothing to do with the quantity of patents but is a surgical, strategic endeavor that can create true, long-term competitive advantage for a company? If that’s you, the Zipline Legal Team is searching for an experienced counsel to lead our global IP portfolio initiatives, including patent and other intellectual property matters related to our business. In this role, you will partner closely with cross-functional stakeholders, such as Hardware, Autonomy, Software, and Product. You’ll bring deep knowledge of IP, a passion for patents, and a positive attitude to everything you do. You’ll be a core member of a strong, friendly, passionate, in-house legal function and will report to Zipline’s [Deputy General Counsel, Corporate]. If you're energized by tackling meaningful problems, excited to innovate and radically improve processes, and motivated by work that truly matters, we'd love to hear from you.

What You'll Do

Set and execute the strategic direction and management of our global IP portfolio while managing outside counsel as strategically appropriate.
Own the strategy that will determine where Zipline invests in patents by becoming an expert on the patent landscape, ultimately accelerating Zipline’s lead in autonomous scaled flight.
Be hands on where it counts, whether it is the details of a claimset, holding external counsel to incredibly high standards for drafting, or going deep to understand how a part of our system works to arrive at the right strategic decision for the portfolio.
Work closely with our product and engineering teams, including training them on patentability and regularly meeting to understand what IP Zipline is developing on all fronts.
Create scalable processes internally and externally with outside counsel to build, maintain and protect our IP portfolio.
Provide direct client counseling on IP issues arising from product development.
Develop and maintain internal IP policies and programs.

What You'll Bring

You have been involved in every stage of the patent lifecycle from the strategy that determines what will be patented, claims architecture, prosecution, freedom to operate negotiations and IP litigation. You will use this knowledge to ensure that the early static decisions you make anticipate the future lifecycle of our IP to create long-term strategic value.
As part of a small team supporting a rapidly growing organization, the ideal candidate demonstrates sound judgment in handling complex work and thrives in a fast-paced, highly collaborative environment.
Experience with the IP aspects of commercial deals.
Confidence to work independently and judgment to recognize when issues require escalation or input from others.
You are a proactive and pragmatic problem solver - seeing risks and potential issues before they arise and proposing effective solutions.
A positive attitude and the willingness to collaborate with a broad range of stakeholders.
Have at least 10+ years of combined IP experience at innovative technology companies and law firms
JD Degree required
Member in good standing of at least one state bar
Must be eligible to work in the United States

What Else You Need To Know

The starting cash range for this role is $200,000 - $240,000. Please note that this is a target, starting cash range for a candidate who meets the minimum qualifications for this role. The final cash pay for this role will depend on a variety of factors, including a specific candidate's experience, qualifications, skills, working location, and projected impact. The total compensation package for this role may also include: equity compensation; overtime pay; discretionary annual or performance bonuses; sales incentives; benefits such as medical, dental and vision insurance; paid time off; and more.

Zipline is an equal opportunity employer and prohibits discrimination and harassment of any type without regard to race, color, religion, age, sex, national origin, disability status, genetics, protected veteran status, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, or any other characteristic protected by federal, state or local laws or our own sensibilities.

We value diversity at Zipline and welcome applications from those who are traditionally underrepresented in tech. If you like the sound of this position but are not sure if you are the perfect fit, please apply!

Voluntary Self-Identification

For government reporting purposes, we ask candidates to respond to the below self-identification survey. Completion of the form is entirely voluntary. Whatever your decision, it will not be considered in the hiring process or thereafter. Any information that you do provide will be recorded and maintained in a confidential file.

As set forth in Zipline ’s Equal Employment Opportunity policy, we do not discriminate on the basis of any protected group status under any applicable law.