Staff Software Engineer, Identity Infrastructure Engineering

OpenAI

. Lead the architecture, development, and operation of identity infrastructure that spans cloud platforms, internal systems, and critical engineering services.

Posted 5/14/2026full-timeSan Francisco • California • 🇺🇸 United StatesLead💰 $293,000 - $385,000 per yearWebsite

Tech Stack

Tools & technologies

CloudDistributed SystemsGoPythonRust

About the role

Key responsibilities & impact

Lead the architecture, development, and operation of identity infrastructure that spans cloud platforms, internal systems, and critical engineering services.
Design and evolve systems for authentication, authorization, access governance, auditability, and policy enforcement with a strong focus on reliability, scalability, and secure-by-default design.
Build foundational infrastructure and platform capabilities that are broadly used across engineering, research, and security teams.
Improve the reliability, observability, performance, and operational maturity of identity infrastructure that supports mission-critical systems and workflows.
Lead ambiguous, high-impact technical initiatives across security, infrastructure, and engineering teams, driving alignment and execution across multiple stakeholders.
Partner closely with engineers, researchers, and security teams to build scalable access patterns and infrastructure that enable rapid development while maintaining strong security boundaries and operational rigor.
Raise the engineering bar through strong technical judgment, thoughtful system design, operational excellence, and long-term ownership of critical infrastructure.

Requirements

What you’ll need

10+ years building and operating large-scale infrastructure, platform, or backend systems.
Deep experience with cloud infrastructure, identity systems, distributed systems, and infrastructure-as-code.
Experience leading complex technical initiatives across teams and driving architecture in ambiguous environments.
Experience building security-critical systems involving authentication, authorization, access governance, privileged access, or policy enforcement.
Strong software engineering fundamentals with experience in Go, Rust, Python, or similar languages.
Ability to debug across code, cloud infrastructure, identity systems, networking, and operations.
High bar for reliability, security, auditability, and operational rigor in mission-critical systems.

Benefits

Comp & perks

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.

ATS Keywords

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Applicant Tracking System Keywords

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Hard Skills & Tools

cloud infrastructureidentity systemsdistributed systemsinfrastructure-as-codeauthenticationauthorizationaccess governancepolicy enforcementGoRust

Soft Skills

leadershiptechnical judgmentsystem designoperational excellencecollaborationcommunicationalignmentexecutionproblem-solvingadaptability