Catalytic AI Programs Officer

ImpactAlpha Inc.; San Francisco (CA); Hybrid; USD 220,000 - 300,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Comprehensive health insurance

Hybrid work model

Professional development opportunities

Job summary

OpenAI Foundation in San Francisco, CA is seeking a Program Officer, Catalytic Deployment to shape portfolio strategy and drive AI-enabled civil-society impact. You will collaborate with the Head of Catalytic Deployments to identify priorities, source grants, and provide high-quality diligence and recommendations.

The role requires 5+ years leading in nonprofits or related fields, strong communication, and the ability to operate autonomously in a hybrid environment with travel as needed.

Qualifications

• Minimum 5+ years of leadership experience in nonprofits, philanthropy, or government.
• Subject matter expertise in at least one social sector domain (e.g., health, education, poverty alleviation, economic mobility).
• Ability to reason about AI capabilities, constraints, and civil-society deployment risks.
• Proven ability to evaluate opportunities and make strong recommendations.
• Comfort working in a fast-moving environment with evolving priorities.
• Experience engaging external experts, institutions, and senior stakeholders.
• Excellent written and verbal communication, with the ability to synthesize complex information clearly.

Responsibilities

• Contribute to strategy, prioritization, and approach for Catalytic Deployments; own areas over time.
• Source, evaluate, and recommend grants and other funding opportunities.
• Conduct due diligence on organizations, projects, and leaders; assess execution potential.
• Support a growing grants portfolio with clear prioritization and follow-through.
• Engage deeply with researchers, nonprofits, academic centers, funders, and grantees.
• Identify gaps and develop ideas for new efforts, partnerships, or field-building.
• Develop and launch initiatives from concept to implementation.
• Represent the Foundation in external conversations and source opportunities.
• Write internal recommendations and strategy memos to support decisions.

Skills

Leadership

Nonprofit/philanthropy

AI understanding

Evaluation & due diligence

Strategic judgment

Communication

Ownership & accountability

Stakeholder engagement

Job description

OpenAI Foundation in San Francisco, CA is seeking a Program Officer, Catalytic Deployment to shape portfolio strategy and drive AI-enabled civil-society impact. You will collaborate with the Head of Catalytic Deployments to identify priorities, source grants, and provide high-quality diligence and recommendations.

The role requires 5+ years leading in nonprofits or related fields, strong communication, and the ability to operate autonomously in a hybrid environment with travel as needed.