About Exa

Exa is building a search engine for the AI era. Our Search API currently powers Agents, Fortune 500s and AI labs as we transform an industry that hasn’t been disrupted since the 90s. We're a largely SF-based team of ~100 from Harvard, MIT, Meta, Google Research, ex-founders & dropouts alike.

We are rapidly building the most intelligent search engine in history. We’re high agency, low-ego, and united by the feeling that this is one of the last problems worth getting right.

About the Role

Reporting directly to co-founder Jeff Wang, the VP Finance will be Exa’s first dedicated finance leader and a key member of the executive leadership team, driving financial strategy, operational rigor, and business insight across the organization. This role requires a strategic thinker with strong leadership capabilities, exceptional financial acumen, and a proven track record in building financial infrastructures to support hyper growth. Equally important is the ability to operate as a true business partner - someone who can translate complex financial data into clear strategic insights, partner closely with GTM and product leadership, and communicate with precision and confidence to the founders, board, and investors. With its Series C just closed and revenue scaling rapidly, Exa needs a leader who brings rigor to both compute-driven unit economics and top-line growth, while building the finance function from 0 to 1.

Responsibilities

Build the Finance Function

Establish internal controls, systems, and processes to support scale and audit readiness
Bring core accounting and finance operations in-house
Hire and develop a high-caliber finance team from the ground up

Financial Planning & Analysis / Financial Operations:

Build and own financial models and forecasting suited to a consumption-based API business
Own company-wide budgeting and scenario planning
Establish and refine FP&A processes that give leadership real financial visibility and support fast, data-driven decisions
Ensure the integrity of financial reporting and compliance with applicable regulations.

Strategic Finance

Serve as a key strategic partner to the leadership team on all financial decisions - from pricing and unit economics to capital allocation
Partner with GTM on pricing, packaging, and strategic deal-making
Partner with Engineering on infrastructure and product decisions that carry unit-economic implications
Own capital allocation strategy and treasury

Fundraising & Investor Relations

Own investor reporting and board communications
Prepare Exa for future financing events - Series D and beyond

Qualifications:

Bachelor’s degree in finance, accounting, or a related field
8 - 15 years of finance experience, with meaningful time at a high-growth technology company
Strategic finance background: IB, PE, venture capital, or growth-stage operator experience
Track record building a finance function at a scaling startup - you’ve seen what great looks like and how to build it
Deep fluency in financial modeling and FP&A for API/consumption-based business models
Hands-on experience managing compute costs in an infrastructure, AI, or usage-based business
Strong commercial instincts - ability to partner closely with GTM leadership on revenue strategy, pricing, and unit economics
Experience leading institutional fundraising
Exceptional communicator - concise, direct, and able to distill complex financial data into clear executive and board-level insights
Operator mentality: moves fast, builds from scratch, and thrives in ambiguity
Low ego, high accountability - a collaborator who earns trust through execution

Location

Targeting San Francisco Bay Area as preferred location

VP, Finance