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OpenAI's API Agents team is building the shared infrastructure and harness that transforms frontier AI models into reliable systems capable of completing real-world work across software engineering, research, finance, healthcare, and enterprise operations. This role focuses on backend and systems engineering rather than model training.
You will design and build core backend systems that enable agents to find context, use tools and computers, retain knowledge, coordinate multi-agent workflows, and execute safely. The work spans agent runtimes, orchestration, search, execution environments, identity and permissions, observability, and evaluations.
Key responsibilities include:
- Designing and operating the shared agent harness and backend infrastructure powering long-running, high-value workflows across OpenAI and third-party products
- Building reusable capabilities for search, context retrieval, computer use, memory, tool execution, delegation, and multi-agent orchestration
- Establishing production safety foundations including secure execution environments, identity/permissions, observability, evaluations, reliability, and cost/latency efficiency
- Partnering with Research, Codex, infrastructure, and product teams to translate model progress and real workflow needs into shared capabilities
Required background:
- 7+ years of professional backend, infrastructure, platform, or product engineering experience
- Exceptional backend fundamentals and proven ability to lead complex systems from ambiguous requirements to reliable production services
- Proficiency in Python, Go, Rust, TypeScript, or similar languages
- Strong systems design expertise in distributed systems, APIs, workflow orchestration, search/storage, compute execution, identity/permissions, or observability
- Ability to abstract complex systems into simple, durable primitives for other engineers and developers
- Strong developer empathy, communication skills, and experience partnering with research and product teams
- High agency and comfort in fast-moving environments with strong ownership of security and operational excellence
