Austin Harms

Startup Lawyer · Entrepreneur · Investor

I run Altum Legal, where I serve as fractional general counsel for startups and VC funds. I'm also Chief Legal Officer of Real Finance, Inc., a fintech company building automated market infrastructure for private credit. Previously seven years at Perkins Coie. I serve on corporate boards, write The Startup Law Playbook, and invest in frontier technology companies.

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Austin Harms

I'm a frontier optimist — transformative technologies will improve the human condition, and that belief demands participation.

Selected

Jan 2025 · 2 min read Startup Law What Founders Get Wrong About SAFEs The most common misconceptions I see founders make with Simple Agreements for Future Equity — and how to avoid dilution surprises at your Series A. Nov 2024 · 2 min read Essay The Case for Frontier Optimism Why I believe the most transformative technologies — AI, synthetic biology, space, climate tech — will improve the human condition, and why that belief demands action.

Recent

Jun 2026 · 8 min read Essay The Law Already Knows What an Agent Is AI agents are about to test centuries of agency law - and that's exactly how we get the legal infrastructure the technology deserves. Mar 2026 · 5 min read Startup Law DeFi Is Shadow Banking 2.0. Here's Why That Matters for Your Company. The same structural risks that caused the 2008 financial crisis are rebuilding on-chain. If you're building in DeFi, here's what the regulatory trajectory means for your company. Aug 2024 · 3 min read Venture Lessons from Structuring Venture Fund I Practical insights from working with emerging managers on their first fund — from GP commitment to management fee waterfalls.
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JD, UC Law San Francisco (Hastings). BA, Harvard University. 2025 & 2026 Super Lawyers Rising Star. Dad, surfer, climber. Based in Los Angeles.