Manager, Applied AI Architect

We Love AI Jobs; San Francisco (CA); Hybrid; USD 280,000 - 300,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Relocation assistance

Hybrid work model

Job summary

OpenAI is seeking a Manager, Applied AI Architect to lead a team of Applied AI Architects in a role that blends technical leadership with customer engagement. You will drive strategy, align delivery plans with customer goals, and oversee pre-sales discovery, evaluation, and deployment to achieve measurable outcomes.

The position supports a hybrid model in San Francisco or New York, with relocation assistance for new hires and close collaboration with Sales, Deployment, Product, Engineering, and

Qualifications

• 8+ years of experience in technical customer-facing roles.
• Experience leading technical pre-sales teams and coordinating across delivery functions.
• Proven ability to guide customers through evaluation, deployment and adoption of AI solutions.
• Strong understanding of cloud and network architectures in enterprise contexts.

Responsibilities

• Set the strategic direction for the Applied AI Architect team and align it with customer needs.
• Guide the team through customer discovery, evaluation, deployment, and adoption.
• Resolve complex customer challenges and coordinate technical ownership across delivery teams.
• Collaborate with Sales, Product, Engineering, and Research to ensure outcomes.

Skills

Generative AI

Machine learning

Cloud architecture

Network architecture

Technical pre-sales

Customer deployment

Team leadership

Job description

# Manager, Applied AI ArchitectOpenAISan Francisco (Hybrid)Full-time$280,000 – $300,000 / yearUpload your resume once and Scout applies for youApply with ScoutShare this job:LinkedInXSave imageYou’ll lead Applied AI Architects who help customers evaluate, deploy, and adopt OpenAI technologies. The role combines team strategy and development with customer escalations, technical planning, and coordination across Sales, Product, Engineering, and Research.* Permanent* Hybrid* 8+ years### Skills and expertiseGenerative AIMachine learningCloud architectureNetwork architectureTechnical pre-salesCustomer deployment and adoptionTeam leadership### Key responsibilities* Set the strategic direction for the Applied AI Architect team and align it with customer needs.* Guide the team through customer discovery, evaluation, deployment, and adoption.* Resolve complex customer challenges and coordinate technical ownership across delivery teams.## How this job comparesCompared with 171 open manager customer success jobs on October 10, 2026.Pay: This job pays $280K to $300K a year. The 64 open manager customer success jobs that publish US pay start at $149K on average, so this job starts about 88% higher.Similar open jobs: We Love AI Jobs lists 171 open manager customer success jobs at 91 companies.Remote work: This job is hybrid. 41 of the 171 manager customer success jobs (24%) are remote.AI in this role: Medium. The role uses AI tools and works with AI systems as a regular part of the job. The team helps customers apply OpenAI technologies, including generative AI and traditional ML solutions, through evaluation and deployment. The role works closely with AI products but focuses on customer architecture and team leadership rather than model development.## Full descriptionAbout the roleWe’re looking for a Manager, Applied AI Architect to lead a team of Applied AI Architects. In this role, you’ll combine technical leadership, customer engagement, and team development to deliver exceptional customer experiences from pre-sales discovery and solution evaluation through deployment and adoption, driving real business impact.You’ll guide your team through complex customer challenges, help them navigate ambiguity, and ensure solutions are grounded in both strong technical thinking and clear business value. You’ll also partner closely with Sales, Deployment, Product, Engineering, and Research to create a seamless end-to-end customer journey.This role is open in our San Francisco or New York office. We use a hybrid work model of 3 days in the office per week and offer relocation assistance to new employees.In this role, you will:• Develop and communicate a clear strategic vision for the Applied AI Architect team, ensuring alignment with the company's overarching goals and the evolving needs of our customers.• Guide and support a multifaceted team throughout the customer lifecycle, from pre-sales discovery and evaluation through deployment and adoption, ensuring clear technical account plans, measurable customer outcomes, and scalable systems and processes.• Act as a trusted escalation point for key customers within your sales segment, helping to address complex technical challenges and ensuring clear communication with executive-level stakeholders.• Advocate for the innovative and effective application of our AI technologies across various sectors, positioning the company as a leader in the industry.• Ensure your team remains accountable for technical progress and customer outcomes, coordinating specialist support and establishing clear ownership with delivery teams for implementation execution.You’ll thrive in this role if you:• Bring 8+ years of experience in technical customer-facing roles, building and managing C-level technical and business relationships within complex, global organizations.• Have 3+ years of experience leading technical pre-sales teams, with a proven track record of hiring, mentoring, and managing high-performing teams.• Have successfully led complex sales involving Generative AI or traditional ML solutions, with a solid understanding of network and cloud architectures.• Have a humble attitude, an eagerness to help others, and a willingness to learn whatever it takes to support the team and help customers thrive• Approach work with humility, a collaborative mindset, and a willingness to learn whatever it takes to support the team and help customers thrive.About OpenAIOpenAI 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 Affirmative Action and Equal Employment Opportunity Policy Statement.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.To notify OpenAI that you believe this job posting is non-compliant, please submit a report through this form. No response will be provided to inquiries unrelated to job posting compliance.