Physical Security Systems Engineer

Details

The Physical Security Engineering team designs, deploys, and sustains the systems that protect OpenAI’s people, facilities, and critical infrastructure. The team works across global office campuses, warehouses, labs and data centers, partnering with IT, Facilities, Construction, and Security Operations to ensure environments meet safety, reliability, and compliance requirements. The team owns security architecture from early site due-diligence through construction, commissioning, and long-term lifecycle management.

This role is a hands-on systems engineer focused on physical security technology: keeping the stack stable, responsive, and scalable. It is a hybrid of physical security infrastructure engineering, operational systems support, stakeholder coordination, and vendor management — not a badge or camera administrator role. The position supports systems that power access control, video surveillance, GSOC workflows, and physical security operations, and partners closely with IT/NetEng and Workplace.

This role is based in the San Francisco office and requires onsite presence 5 days per week.

Responsibilities

• Troubleshoot complex physical security system issues across access control, video management, GSOC workflows, and supporting infrastructure.
• Manage operational tickets and escalations with strong follow-through, documentation, and root-cause thinking.
• Coordinate service requests, remediation work, and quality control with security integrators and vendors.
• Support GSOC workflows, including system access management, auditing, feature requests, and security systems programming.
• Partner with networking and infrastructure teams on VLANs, firewall policies, IP schemas, switch configurations, IoT device connectivity, Windows Server, and database dependencies.
• Improve operational consistency across offices by reducing manual work, documenting repeatable processes, and identifying automation opportunities.

What’s success?

Security Operations, GSOC, Workplace, IT, and CorpSec partners can rely on stable, accurate, and well-supported physical security systems. Issues are triaged quickly, escalations have clear ownership, vendors receive precise direction, and recurring problems turn into better documentation, process, or automation. The hire helps the team support rapid office growth without letting reliability or operational quality drift.

Non-negotiable outcomes

• Physical security systems issues are handled with clear triage, strong technical reasoning, and complete follow-through.
• GSOC and Security Operations can depend on accurate access management, auditing, system programming, and support workflows.
• Integrator and vendor work is coordinated tightly, with clear accountability and reduced back-and-forth.
• Networking, server, database, and device dependencies are understood well enough to diagnose issues across the full stack.
• Operational toil and vendor dependency decrease through better documentation, process improvements, and automation opportunities.

About OpenAI

OpenAI is an AI research and deployment company dedicated to ensuring general-purpose AI benefits all of humanity. The company values diverse perspectives and is an equal opportunity employer. Background checks will be administered in accordance with applicable law. The company is committed to providing reasonable accommodations to applicants with disabilities.

Benefits

• Medical, dental, and vision insurance with employer contributions to Health Savings Accounts
• Pre-tax accounts (Health FSA, Dependent Care FSA, commuter expenses)
• 401(k) retirement plan with employer match
• Paid parental leave (up to 24 weeks for birth parents, 20 weeks for non-birthing parents), paid medical and caregiver leave
• Paid time off: flexible PTO for exempt employees and up to 15 days annually for non-exempt employees
• 13+ paid company holidays and additional office closures, paid sick/safe time as required by law
• Mental health and wellness support
• Employer-paid basic life and disability coverage
• Annual learning and development stipend
• Daily meals in offices and meal delivery credits as eligible
• Relocation support for eligible employees
• Additional taxable fringe benefits (charitable donation matching, wellness stipends)