Optical Network Engineer

OpenAI; Los Angeles (CA); On-site; USD 100,000 - 130,000; Full time

Job summary

A cutting-edge AI company in Los Angeles is looking for an experienced Optical Network Engineer. In this role, you will lead laser-related work for optical interconnects, ensuring performance and production readiness. Candidates should have strong optical engineering skills, a hands-on background with IM/DD technologies, and a talent for solving complex issues. Collaboration with external partners and internal teams is essential for success. An advanced degree in engineering is preferred. Join us to help shape the future of AI-driven hardware.

Qualifications

• Strong experience in optical engineering, including development and validation.
• Hands-on experience with optical test/debug workflows.
• Experience managing relationships with external suppliers.

Responsibilities

• Drive technical direction for optical interconnect development.
• Lead validation of optical components in production environments.
• Support end-to-end optical testing processes.

Skills

Optical Engineering

IM/DD Optical Technologies

Data-Driven Debugging

Cross-Functional Communication

Education

Advanced degree in engineering or equivalent experience

Job description

OpenAI’s Hardware organization develops silicon and system-level solutions designed for the unique demands of advanced AI workloads. The team is responsible for building the next generation of AI-native silicon while working closely with software and research partners to co-design hardware tightly integrated with AI models. In addition to delivering production-grade silicon for OpenAI’s supercomputing infrastructure, the team also creates custom design tools and methodologies that accelerate innovation and enable hardware optimized specifically for AI.

About the role:

We are seeking an experienced Optical Network Engineer to lead Laser related work within our optical interconnect efforts for large-scale compute systems. The role also requires broad, hands‑on optical validation experience across IM/DD-based interconnects, working from lab characterization through production readiness and scaled deployment.

In this role you will:

Drive laser-focused requirements and technical direction within the broader optical interconnect roadmap.

Lead evaluation and validation of optical components and subsystems, including laser-based elements, in lab and production-representative environments.

Support end-to-end optical testing for IM/DD interconnects (e.g., module/system bring‑up, characterization, debug, and readiness for scale).

Work with external partners to align on development milestones, performance targets, and quality expectations.

Own technical issue triage and resolution across performance, reliability, and manufacturability topics.

Collaborate across internal teams to support integration, rollout, and operational success at scale.

You might thrive in this role if you have:

Strong experience in laser‑focused optical engineering (development, validation, manufacturing readiness, or field support).

Broad hands‑on background with IM/DD optical technologies and optical test/debug workflows.

Experience working with external suppliers/manufacturing partners and production-oriented execution.

Demonstrated ability to debug complex technical issues using data-driven methods.

Clear written and verbal communication; ability to influence cross‑functional stakeholders.

Advanced degree in a relevant engineering field preferred (or equivalent industry experience).

To comply with U.S. export control laws and regulations, candidates for this role may need to meet certain legal status requirements as provided in those laws and regulations.

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.

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.

We are committed to providing reasonable accommodations to applicants with disabilities, and requests can be made via this link.