Software Engineer, Accelerators at OpenAI

San Francisco, California, United States

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$310,000 – $380,000Compensation

Senior (5 to 8 years), Expert & Leadership (9+ years)Experience Level

Full TimeJob Type

UnknownVisa

Artificial Intelligence, TechnologyIndustries

Requirements

3+ years of experience working on AI infrastructure, including kernels, systems, or hardware-software co-design
Hands-on experience with accelerator platforms for AI at data center scale (e.g., TPUs, custom silicon, exploratory architectures)
Strong understanding of kernels, sharding, runtime systems, or distributed scaling techniques
Familiarity with optimizing LLMs, CNNs, or recommender models for hardware efficiency
Experience with performance modeling, system debugging, and software stack adaptation for novel architectures
Exposure to mobile accelerators is welcome, but experience enabling data center-scale AI hardware is preferred
Ability to operate across multiple levels of the stack, rapidly prototype solutions, and navigate ambiguity in early hardware bring-up phases
Interest in shaping the future of AI compute through exploration of alternatives to mainstream accelerators

Responsibilities

Prototype and enable OpenAI's AI software stack on new, exploratory accelerator platforms
Optimize large-scale model performance (LLMs, recommender systems, distributed AI workloads) for diverse hardware environments
Develop kernels, sharding mechanisms, and system scaling strategies tailored to emerging accelerators
Collaborate on optimizations at the model code level (e.g. PyTorch) and below to enhance performance on non-traditional hardware
Perform system-level performance modeling, debug bottlenecks, and drive end-to-end optimization
Work with hardware teams and vendors to evaluate alternatives to existing platforms and adapt the software stack to their architectures
Contribute to runtime improvements, compute/communication overlapping, and scaling efforts for frontier AI workloads

Skills

Key technologies and capabilities for this role

PyTorchkernelsshardingdistributed systemsperformance modelingsystem softwareacceleratorsruntime optimization

Questions & Answers

Common questions about this position

What is the salary range for the Software Engineer, Accelerators position?

The salary range is $310K - $380K.

Is this a remote position or does it require working in an office?

This information is not specified in the job description.

What skills and experience are required for this role?

Candidates need 3+ years of experience in AI infrastructure including kernels, systems, or hardware-software co-design, hands-on experience with accelerator platforms for AI at data center scale (e.g., TPUs, custom silicon), strong understanding of kernels, sharding, runtime systems, or distributed scaling techniques, and familiarity with optimizing LLMs, CNNs, or recommender models for hardware efficiency.

What is the team culture like at OpenAI's Kernels team?

The Kernels team builds low-level software to accelerate ambitious AI research at the boundary of hardware and software, focusing on high-performance kernels, distributed optimizations, and runtime improvements to enable efficient large-scale training and inference on advanced supercomputing platforms.

What makes a candidate stand out for this Software Engineer role?

Strong candidates have 3+ years in AI infrastructure with hands-on experience on data center-scale accelerators like TPUs or custom silicon, expertise in kernels, sharding, and distributed systems, and the ability to work across the stack from model code to hardware adaptations.

OpenAI

Develops safe and beneficial AI technologies

About OpenAI

OpenAI develops and deploys artificial intelligence technologies aimed at benefiting humanity. The company creates advanced AI models capable of performing various tasks, such as automating processes and enhancing creativity. OpenAI's products, like Sora, allow users to generate videos from text descriptions, showcasing the versatility of its AI applications. Unlike many competitors, OpenAI operates under a capped profit model, which limits the profits it can make and ensures that excess earnings are redistributed to maximize the social benefits of AI. This commitment to safety and ethical considerations is central to its mission of ensuring that artificial general intelligence (AGI) serves all of humanity.

San Francisco, CaliforniaHeadquarters

2015Year Founded

$18,433.2MTotal Funding

LATE_VCCompany Stage

AI & Machine LearningIndustries

1,001-5,000Employees