Software Engineer, Infrastructure - Analytics at OpenAI: Build the Future of AI Research Infrastructure

Join OpenAI's Scaling team as a Software Engineer, Infrastructure - Analytics and become a key architect of the systems powering humanity's most advanced AI research. Located in the heart of San Francisco's tech innovation hub, this role offers the rare opportunity to work on mission-critical infrastructure that accelerates progress toward Artificial General Intelligence (AGI). Whether you're optimizing Kubernetes clusters for petabyte-scale analytics or building observability pipelines that give researchers unprecedented insights, your work will directly impact OpenAI's groundbreaking AI models.

Role Overview

The Scaling team at OpenAI isn't just another infrastructure group—they're the backbone enabling world-class AI research. This Software Engineer, Infrastructure - Analytics position is perfect for pragmatic generalists who excel in distributed systems and thrive in high-velocity environments. You'll design, build, and operate foundational backend services that power everything from real-time observability to large-scale data analytics for ML workflows.

Expect to work with cutting-edge technologies like Kafka for streaming, Spark and Trino for analytics, Apache Iceberg for data lakes, and Kubernetes for orchestration. This role spans the full stack—from low-level infrastructure components to researcher-facing applications—demanding versatility, strong systems thinking, and a passion for operational excellence. Based in San Francisco with a hybrid model (3 days in office), OpenAI also welcomes exceptional remote candidates across the United States.

At OpenAI, infrastructure engineering means solving problems at the bleeding edge of AI scale. Your systems must handle exponentially growing workloads while remaining reliable and intuitive. If you love taming complex distributed systems and empowering brilliant researchers, this is your chance to make history.

Key Responsibilities

As a Software Engineer on the Scaling team, you'll wear many hats. Here's what your day-to-day will look like:

• Architect scalable backend systems for ML research workflows, focusing on observability, analytics, and performance monitoring.
• Build robust infrastructure supporting both streaming (Kafka) and batch (Spark) data processing at massive scale.
• Develop internal tools and applications that streamline researcher workflows and boost productivity.
• Debug and performance-tune services running on Kubernetes, implementing advanced observability with Prometheus, Grafana, and custom metrics.
• Create operational tooling for deployment, monitoring, and incident response using Terraform, Helm, and CI/CD pipelines.
• Collaborate cross-functionally with ML engineers, researchers, and product teams to deliver production-ready systems.
• Participate in on-call rotations, driving rapid incident resolution and post-mortem improvements for 99.99% uptime.
• Optimize data pipelines with Trino/Presto query engines and Iceberg table formats for petabyte-scale analytics.
• Implement reliability engineering practices including chaos testing, circuit breakers, and graceful degradation.
• Contribute to OpenAI's culture of excellence by mentoring junior engineers and documenting scalable patterns.
• Stay ahead of research scaling needs, proactively designing for 10x workload growth.
• Leverage Python and Rust to build high-performance services that set new standards for AI infrastructure.
• Drive performance engineering initiatives, reducing p99 latencies and resource costs across the stack.

Qualifications

We're looking for versatile engineers who can hit the ground running in our fast-paced environment. You might thrive if you have:

• 5+ years of professional software engineering experience with strong Python/Rust proficiency in large-scale codebases.
• Deep expertise in distributed systems, data infrastructure (Kafka, Spark, Trino/Presto, Iceberg), and cloud-native architectures.
• Hands-on Kubernetes operations experience including debugging, scaling, and observability implementation.
• Proven track record with IaC tools like Terraform and Helm for managing complex deployments.
• Experience across the stack: from kernel-level optimizations to full-stack application development.
• Strong systems design skills with focus on reliability, performance, and developer experience.
• Comfort in high-growth startups where requirements evolve rapidly and ownership is paramount.
• Bonus: Experience in ML infrastructure, large language models, or research computing environments.

Salary & Benefits

OpenAI offers competitive compensation reflecting the role's impact. Total compensation for this senior infrastructure engineering role typically ranges from $220,000 - $380,000 USD annually, including base salary, equity, and performance bonuses. Exact figures depend on experience and location.

Beyond pay, enjoy:

• Comprehensive health benefits with low premiums and excellent coverage
• Unlimited vacation with a 'recharge guarantee'
• Hybrid SF work model + full US remote option
• Relocation support including housing and moving expenses
• Generous parental leave (16+ weeks)
• Learning stipends for conferences like KubeCon and Strange Loop
• Daily catered meals and top-tier office perks
• Equity in a company transforming humanity's future

Why Join OpenAI?

OpenAI isn't just building AI—we're ensuring AGI benefits all humanity. As a Software Engineer, Infrastructure - Analytics, you'll work alongside the world's top researchers on systems that power models like GPT-4 and beyond. This is rare ownership: your code will run in production for millions, scaling to unprecedented compute demands.

San Francisco headquarters foster collaboration in a vibrant tech ecosystem, but our hybrid/remote model prioritizes results over seats. Join a team of ex-Google, Meta, and DeepMind engineers obsessed with excellence. OpenAI's mission-driven culture attracts diverse talent united by curiosity and impact.

How to Apply

Ready to accelerate AGI research? Submit your resume, GitHub/portfolio, and a brief note on your favorite distributed systems project. Our process includes technical screens, systems design, and team interviews. We're committed to diversity—no discrimination based on protected characteristics. OpenAI is an equal opportunity employer building AI for everyone.

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