Research Engineer, AI for Science

Details

OpenAI for Science is building the next great scientific instrument: an AI-powered platform that accelerates scientific discovery. The team aims to prove that OpenAI’s frontier models can do real science and help researchers everywhere do more, faster.

As a Research Engineer, you will build AI systems that enable previously impossible capabilities or achieve unprecedented levels of performance. You will work at the intersection of engineering and research, designing, implementing, and improving large-scale machine learning systems while contributing to the science behind the algorithms themselves. The role requires strong engineering fundamentals, writing high-quality ML code, experience working at massive computational scale, and an interest in OpenAI’s research direction.

This role is based in San Francisco, CA. OpenAI uses a hybrid work model of 3 days in the office per week and offers relocation assistance to new employees.

Responsibilities

• Design, implement, and improve large-scale distributed machine learning systems.
• Write robust, high-quality machine learning code and contribute to performance-critical components.
• Collaborate closely with researchers to translate ideas into scalable, production-ready systems.

Requirements

• Strong programming and software engineering fundamentals; ability to build reliable, high-performance systems.
• Comfortable working in large distributed systems and at significant computational scale.
• Experience with machine learning and deep learning system development; experience building high-performance implementations of deep learning algorithms is listed as nice-to-have.
• Motivation to work on research-driven problems and apply AI to accelerate scientific discovery.

Benefits & Additional Information

• Base pay range listed: $310,000 - $460,000 (total compensation may include equity and performance-related bonuses).
• Medical, dental, and vision insurance with employer contributions to Health Savings Accounts.
• Pre-tax accounts (Health FSA, Dependent Care FSA, commuter expenses), 401(k) with employer match.
• Paid parental, medical, caregiver leave; flexible PTO; paid company holidays and office closures.
• Mental health and wellness support, employer-paid basic life and disability coverage.
• Annual learning and development stipend; daily office meals and meal credits as eligible.
• Relocation support for eligible employees.
• Background checks will be administered in accordance with applicable law; OpenAI is an equal opportunity employer and provides reasonable accommodations to applicants with disabilities.