Software Engineer, Monetization Infrastructure

Details

About the Team

The Monetization team is a new cross-functional group working across engineering, product, research, and design to build the foundational systems that will help OpenAI scale access to intelligence responsibly. Our mission is to develop user-first, privacy-preserving monetization products — including next-generation ads experiences — that strengthen user trust, unlock economic opportunity, and support OpenAI’s long-term innovation.

Monetization plays a critical role in enabling OpenAI to continue pushing the boundaries of AI capabilities while ensuring the benefits of AGI are broadly shared. We believe monetization must be aligned with user value, uphold rigorous privacy and safety standards, and sustain a healthy ecosystem of developers and businesses.

This team operates in a greenfield environment and moves quickly through prototyping, experimentation, and iterative deployment. We partner closely with Product, Design, and Research to bring research breakthroughs into real-world systems at global scale.

About the Role

We’re looking for an experienced Software Engineer to help build the core infrastructure behind OpenAI’s monetization and ads systems. In this foundational role, you’ll architect and implement distributed systems that power OpenAI’s monetization stack — focusing on reliability, performance, privacy, and large-scale operation.

You’ll work across backend, systems, and platform layers to define and implement 0→1 infrastructure, partnering closely with Product, Design, and Research to shape the future of monetized AI experiences. Your work will enable both internal and external teams to build on safe, scalable, and robust monetization primitives.

This role is exclusively based in our San Francisco HQ. We offer relocation assistance to new employees.

Responsibilities

• Design and build the foundational backend and infrastructure powering OpenAI’s monetization and ads systems
• Architect large-scale distributed systems that meet strict requirements for reliability, privacy, security, and performance
• Develop APIs, infrastructure services, and internal platforms that support ads creation, delivery, measurement, and optimization
• Work closely with Product, Research, and Design to translate requirements into scalable technical solutions
• Drive 0→1 infra development through rapid prototyping, experimentation, and iterative improvements
• Contribute to the long-term technical strategy and roadmap for the monetization infra stack
• Ensure high engineering rigor through excellent testing, documentation, observability, and operational best practices
• Build for safety, privacy, fairness, and policy alignment from first principles
• Collaborate across engineering orgs to ensure the infra layer is flexible, performant, and resilient

Requirements

• Significant experience building and operating large-scale distributed systems (posting indicates 10+ years desirable)
• Experience designing mission-critical systems with demanding reliability, performance, and correctness requirements
• Strong systems thinking: architecture, data flows, operational concerns, observability, and long-term maintainability
• Comfortable defining technical direction in ambiguous 0→1 environments
• Experience working cross-functionally to shape product requirements and system capabilities
• Clear communication, holistic reasoning, and decision making grounded in user needs and long-term system health
• Bonus: experience in ads systems, marketplaces, AI/ML infrastructure, or other monetization-intensive domains

Benefits

• Base salary range: $255,000 – $405,000 (offers equity)
• Medical, dental, and vision insurance with employer contributions to Health Savings Accounts
• Pre-tax accounts for Health FSA, Dependent Care FSA, and commuter expenses
• 401(k) retirement plan with employer match
• Paid parental leave and paid medical/caregiver leave
• Paid time off (flexible PTO for exempt employees; up to 15 days annually for non-exempt employees)
• 13+ paid company holidays and multiple company office closures
• 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)

Additional Notes

• Background checks may be administered in accordance with applicable law
• OpenAI is an equal opportunity employer and provides reasonable accommodations for applicants with disabilities