Principal Software Engineer, Infrastructure Security

OpenAI

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Research Services 👥 201 employees 📍 San Francisco, CA, US Est. 2015

OpenAI is an AI research and deployment company dedicated to ensuring that general-purpose artificial intelligence benefits all of humanity. AI is an extremely powerful tool that must be created with…

Job Overview

OpenAI is seeking a Principal Software Engineer to join the Infrastructure Security (InfraSec) team. InfraSec safeguards the core of OpenAI’s research and production environments: GPU supercomputing clusters, multi-cloud infrastructure, datacenters, networking, storage, and the critical services that power our frontier AI models. Our charter spans everything from bare-metal hardware and firmware to Kubernetes clusters, service meshes, and the data pathways that carry highly sensitive model weights and user data.

Key Responsibilities

• Own the architecture and roadmap for one or more core security services (e.g., authN/Z, policy enforcement, secure proxies, key management), taking them from design to rollout to long-term operation.


• Design and implement planet-scale security systems that provide strong guarantees across hardware, operating systems, Kubernetes, networks, and CI/CD: balancing security, reliability, latency, and developer ergonomics.


• Lead cross-functional launches with infrastructure and research engineering teams, shaping interfaces, migration plans, and safe rollout strategies across large fleets and critical workflows.


• Build or evolve security primitives (identity, attestation, authorization, encryption key lifecycle, access mediation) that become platform building blocks for OpenAI.


• Leverage frontier models and agents to develop automation and detection tooling to continuously identify and mitigate risks in large-scale cloud and on-prem environments.


• Lead design reviews and threat models for major initiatives, and drive closure on systemic issues.


• Mentor engineers across InfraSec and partner teams, raising the bar on engineering quality, operational readiness, and secure-by-default practices.

Required Qualifications

• Strong software engineering skills with a track record of shipping and operating reliable distributed systems in production.


• Experience building or operating critical infrastructure, especially security infrastructure, at planet scale (e.g., auth services, service-to-service proxies, certificate or key-management systems).


• Deep understanding of security principles, best practices, and common vulnerabilities.


• Demonstrated ability to lead cross-team technical initiatives: setting direction, aligning stakeholders, driving execution, and delivering measurable outcomes.


• Expertise and curiosity about using frontier models and agents to effectively solve security challenges.


• Expertise in securing large-scale cloud platforms (e.g., Azure, AWS, GCP), including multi-cloud networks and cloud-agnostic system design.


• A proactive mindset, with the ability to identify and address security gaps or inefficiencies through automation and tooling.


• Strong analytical and problem-solving skills, with an ability to think critically and objectively assess risks.


• Excellent communication skills, with the ability to convey complex security concepts.

About OpenAI

Security is at the foundation of OpenAI’s mission to ensure that artificial general intelligence benefits all of humanity. The Security team protects OpenAI’s technology, people, and products. We are technical in what we build but operational in how we execute, and we support every product and research effort at OpenAI. Our tenets include prioritizing for impact, enabling researchers and developers, preparing for future transformative technologies, and fostering a strong, collaborative security culture.

Benefits

Medical, dental, and vision insurance for you and your family, with employer contributions to Health Savings Accounts
Pre-tax accounts for Health FSA, Dependent Care FSA, and commuter expenses (parking and transit)
401(k) retirement plan with employer match
Paid parental leave (up to 24 weeks for birth parents and 20 weeks for non-birthing parents), plus paid medical and caregiver leave (up to 8 weeks)
Paid time off: flexible PTO for exempt employees and up to 15 days annually for non-exempt employees
13+ paid company holidays, and multiple paid coordinated company office closures throughout the year for focus and recharge, plus paid sick or safe time (1 hour per 30 hours worked, or more, as required by applicable state or local law)
Mental health and wellness support
Employer-paid basic life and disability coverage
Annual learning and development stipend to fuel your professional growth
Daily meals in our offices, and meal delivery credits as eligible
Relocation support for eligible employees
Additional taxable fringe benefits, such as charitable donation matching and wellness stipends, may also be provided.