Global Tax Lead

Who We Are

Lightning AI is the company behind PyTorch Lightning. Founded in 2019, we build an end-to-end platform for developing, training, and deploying AI systems—designed to take ideas from research to production with less friction.

Through our merger with Voltage Park, a neocloud and AI Factory, Lightning AI combines developer-first software with cost-efficient, large-scale compute. Teams get the tools they need for experimentation, training, and production inference, with security, observability, and control built in.

We serve solo researchers, startups, and large enterprises. Lightning AI operates globally with offices in New York City, San Francisco, Seattle, and London, and is backed by Coatue, Index Ventures, Bain Capital Ventures, and Firstminute.

The Way We Work

The people who thrive here are builders who move fast, communicate openly, take ownership, and continuously improve themselves, their teams, and our company. Here's what that looks like in practice:

Move with Urgency: We move quickly, make thoughtful decisions, and keep momentum. We value action over perfection and learn by shipping.

Take Ownership: We own outcomes, not just our individual work. We make decisions that move the company forward and follow through.

Communicate Openly: We communicate directly, seek to understand, and create clarity for others. Honest conversations help us move faster together.

Build Great Teams: We lead by example, empower others, and create healthy teams where people can do their best work.

Raise the Bar: We're always improving ourselves. We learn from feedback, consistently challenge ourselves to grow, and focus on the work that matters most.

Think Long-Term: We design for what's next. We create scalable systems, simplify complexity, and use AI and automation to amplify our impact.

WHAT WE’RE LOOKING FOR

We are looking for a Global Tax Lead to own and scale Lightning’s corporate tax compliance function as the company grows. You will be responsible for managing income tax compliance, tax accounting support, forecasting, risk mitigation, and tax process improvements across the business. This role will partner closely with Finance, Accounting, FP&A, Legal, and external advisors to ensure accurate filings, strong controls, and scalable tax operations.

This is a high-impact role for someone who combines deep technical tax expertise with an operational mindset. You will help build the systems, processes, documentation, and controls needed to support a fast-growing AI infrastructure company operating in a complex and evolving tax environment. The tax scope is broad, leadership visibility is high, and the work directly supports financial accuracy, compliance, risk management, and long-term business scalability.

This is a hybrid role based in San Francisco with in-office requirements of 2 days per week.

WHAT YOU'LL DO

Build and own the tax function

Stand up Lightning AI's corporate tax function across the multi-entity consolidated group

Establish tax policies, documentation, controls, and procedures from the ground up to support internal governance and audit readiness

Develop the multi-year tax operating roadmap, including process design, automation priorities, and the consultant-to-FTE transition plan

Compliance across federal, state, and local

Lead U.S. federal and state corporate income tax compliance, including the first consolidated federal return

Manage California mandatory combined reporting and multi-state nexus exposure across the group, including separate-filing and addback jurisdictions

Oversee indirect tax compliance — sales and use, gross receipts — given the company's multi-jurisdictional data center and customer footprint

Oversee property tax compliance across the company's data center and equipment footprint, including assessment review, return preparation, appeals, and exemption or abatement opportunities tied to GPU and infrastructure investments

Tax accounting and audit support

Own quarterly and annual income tax provision work under U.S. GAAP and ASC 740, including effective tax rate analyses, deferred tax positions, and uncertain tax position documentation

Partner with the external auditors and the Corporate Accounting team to deliver tax workstreams supporting the first-year audit

Build tax forecasts and reporting cadences that support Finance, FP&A, and leadership decision-making

M&A and strategic transactions

Support technical accounting workstreams for recent acquisitions, including ASC 805 purchase accounting tax implications, opening balance sheet tax positions, and carryforward analysis

Lead the tax workstream on future M&A, financing, and restructuring transactions

Partner with Strategic Finance and Corporate Development on Deal Desk diligence and structuring

Cross-functional partnership and risk management

Identify, assess, and mitigate corporate tax risks, and monitor evolving tax laws and reporting requirements, including the changing landscape for AI infrastructure businesses

Manage relationships with external tax advisors, auditors, and other third-party partners

Communicate complex tax matters clearly to non-tax stakeholders across Finance, Accounting, FP&A, Legal, and Engineering

WHAT YOU'LL NEED

Bachelor's degree in Accounting, Finance, or a related field; CPA or MST strongly preferred

8+ years of progressive corporate tax experience, with a mix of Big 4 public accounting and in-house experience

Strong technical command of U.S. federal and state corporate income tax compliance, including consolidated return rules

Working knowledge of California combined reporting and multi-state apportionment, including separate-filing state exposure and addback rules

Demonstrated experience with ASC 740, tax provisions, deferred tax accounting, and effective tax rate analysis

Hands-on experience with M&A tax — purchase accounting, opening balance sheet, carryforward analysis, and post-merger integration

Experience standing up or significantly rebuilding a tax function; start-up, post-merger integration, or carve-out experience strongly preferred

Comfort with the technical accounting demands of an infrastructure or cloud business — capex-heavy fixed assets, complex revenue arrangements, and leases under ASC 842

Track record of partnering effectively with Accounting, Finance, Legal, FP&A, auditors, and external advisors

Experience with tax provision and compliance tools such as OneSource, Corptax, or similar

Excellent written and verbal communication, with the ability to brief executives and translate tax for non-tax audiences

Bias toward building rather than maintaining; comfort operating in a fast-paced, foundation-building environment with evolving priorities

Particularly strong candidates will bring:

Prior experience at a high-growth AI, cloud, infrastructure, or other capex-intensive technology company

Exposure to GPU financing, vendor financing, or other complex capital structures

Experience supporting a first-year audit or significant compliance remediation

Multi-state intercompany pricing experience across a multi-entity U.S. group

Property tax experience in a capex-heavy environment, including data center, GPU, or equipment-intensive footprints

We are committed to offering competitive compensation that reflects the value each team member brings to our mission. Final offers are based on factors such as experience, skills, geographic location, and role expectations. In addition to base salary, our total rewards package for eligible roles includes a discretionary bonus, a meaningful equity component, and comprehensive benefits.

The anticipated annual base salary range for this role is:

$185,000 — $200,000 USD

Benefits and Perks

We offer a comprehensive and competitive benefits package designed to support our employees’ health, well-being, and long-term success: