Electrical Commissioning Lead

OpenAI; San Francisco (CA); On-site; USD 180,000 - 240,000; Full time

Job summary

OpenAI is seeking a Data Center Commissioning Engineer to lead commissioning of hyperscale data center infrastructure optimized for AI workloads across global sites.

You will develop standards, scripts, and QA processes, partnering with engineering, construction, hardware, and operations teams to ensure flawless handover to operations and high reliability.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Electrical Engineering or related field.
• 7+ years of experience commissioning or operating large-scale, mission-critical electrical systems (hyperscale, AI, or cloud data centers preferred).
• Strong technical expertise in electrical distribution, emergency power, and load management.
• Proven ability to manage commissioning activities from planning through operational turnover.
• Experience interpreting electrical schematics, specifications, and QA/QC documentation.
• Willingness to travel frequently to global project sites.

Responsibilities

• Lead data center commissioning strategy in partnership with engineering and construction teams.
• Develop and enforce commissioning standards, test scripts, and QA/QC protocols.
• Drive resolution of design and field issues during commissioning to achieve readiness targets.
• Collaborate with design engineers, construction teams, and vendors to capture lessons learned.
• Support accelerated commissioning schedules while upholding safety and reliability.
• Provide technical expertise during integrated systems testing and oversee transition to steady-state operations.
• Produce and manage detailed commissioning reports, including performance metrics, issue tracking, and resolution status.

Skills

Electrical distribution

Emergency power

Load management

Commissioning management

Schematic interpretation

Cross-functional coordination

Travel readiness

Education

Bachelor's degree in Electrical Engineering

Job description

Role Summary

OpenAI is on a bold mission to build the world’s most advanced AI infrastructure. We are seeking a Data Center Commissioning Engineer with 10+ years of experience commissioning mission-critical power and cooling systems. In this role, you will be responsible for ensuring that all critical systems in OpenAI’s hyperscale data centers are rigorously tested, validated, and transitioned to operations at the highest standards of quality, safety, and performance, fully aligned with design intent.

The Data Center Engineering team is at the core of this mission, defining infrastructure strategy, driving technical innovation, collaborating with research to establish performance benchmarks, and developing reference designs that enable rapid, scalable global deployment.

As part of this team, you will lead the commissioning and delivery of next-generation data center infrastructure optimized for AI workloads. You will partner closely with stakeholders across research, site selection, design, construction, hardware engineering, deployment, operations, and global partners to bring OpenAI’s infrastructure vision to life.

Key Responsibilities

• Lead OpenAI’s data center commissioning strategy in partnership with engineering and construction teams.
• Develop and enforce commissioning standards, test scripts, and quality assurance protocols to ensure consistent, predictable delivery.
• Drive resolution of design and field issues during commissioning to achieve operational readiness targets.
• Collaborate with design engineers, construction teams, and vendors to capture lessons learned and apply them to future projects.
• Support accelerated commissioning schedules while upholding the highest standards of safety and reliability.
• Provide technical expertise during integrated systems testing and oversee the transition to steady-state operations.
• Produce and manage detailed commissioning reports, including performance metrics, issue tracking, and resolution status.

Required Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Electrical Engineering or related field.
• 7+ years of experience in commissioning or operating large-scale, mission-critical electrical systems (hyperscale, AI, or cloud data centers preferred).
• Strong technical expertise in electrical distribution, emergency power, and load management.
• Proven ability to manage commissioning activities from planning through operational turnover.
• Experience interpreting electrical schematics, specifications, and QA/QC documentation.
• Willingness to travel frequently to global project sites.

Preferred Qualifications

• Professional Engineer (PE) license or equivalent.
• Familiarity with advanced testing methodologies, load bank testing, and integrated systems testing for high-density AI workloads.
• Strong communication skills for cross-functional coordination and vendor management.
• Experience developing commissioning standards or programs at a global scale.

About OpenAI

OpenAI is an AI research and deployment company dedicated to ensuring that general-purpose artificial intelligence benefits all of humanity. We push the boundaries of the capabilities of AI systems and seek to safely deploy them to the world through our products. AI is an extremely powerful tool that must be created with safety and human needs at its core, and to achieve our mission, we must encompass and value the many different perspectives, voices, and experiences that form the full spectrum of humanity.

We are an equal opportunity employer, and we do not discriminate on the basis of race, religion, color, national origin, sex, sexual orientation, age, veteran status, disability, genetic information, or other applicable legally protected characteristic.

For additional information, please see OpenAI’s Aff…

Background checks for applicants will be administered in accordance with applicable law, and qualified applicants with arrest or conviction records will be considered for employment consistent with those laws, including the San Francisco Fair Chance Ordinance, the Los Angeles County Fair Chance Ordinance for Employers, and the California Fair Chance Act, for US-based candidates. For unincorporated Los Angeles County workers: we reasonably believe that criminal history may have a direct, adverse and negative relationship with the following job duties, potentially resulting in the withdrawal of a conditional offer of employment: protect computer hardware entrusted to you from theft, loss or damage; return all computer hardware in your possession (including the data contained therein) upon termination of employment or end of assignment; and maintain the confidentiality of proprietary, confidential, and non-public information. In addition, job duties require access to secure and protected information technology systems and related data security obligations.

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