Robotics Inventory Lead: Build & Scale Stockrooms

OpenAI; California (MO); On-site; USD 90,000 - 130,000; Full time

Job summary

OpenAI is building a new-in-house inventory function in San Francisco, CA. We are seeking an Inventory Manager to establish processes, set up stockrooms, and manage material flow, from receiving to cycle counting, while coordinating with facilities across sites.

You will directly handle core inventory activities, hire and train staff as volume grows, and ensure accurate visibility and control over all stock as the organization scales.

Qualifications

• 4+ years of experience in inventory management, warehouse operations, materials operations, internal logistics, or a related field.
• Experience building or substantially improving an inventory operation, not only working within an established one.
• Strong working knowledge of receiving, putaway, picking, kitting, cycle counting, material transfers, inventory reconciliation, and physical inventory controls.
• Willingness to work directly in stockrooms, receiving areas, laboratories, and manufacturing spaces.
• Ability to move comfortably between strategic design and hands-on execution.
• Experience selecting and implementing physical inventory infrastructure such as racks, shelving, bins, labeling systems, barcode scanners, and material-handling equipment.
• Familiarity with ERP, WMS, MES, or inventory-management systems and the transactions required to maintain accurate inventory.
• Willingness to travel regularly among company facilities.

Responsibilities

• Build inventory operations from the ground up across various OpenAI facilities.
• Design and set up stockrooms, receiving areas, and material-storage locations, including selecting racks, shelving, bins, carts, labeling equipment, scanners, and other infrastructure.
• Personally execute core inventory activities, including receiving, labeling, putaway, picking, kitting, issuing, cycle counting, transfers, returns, and inventory adjustments.
• Establish practical receiving procedures that ensure incoming material is identified, recorded, inspected or quarantined when appropriate, and made available quickly.
• Hire, train, and manage contractors or onsite inventory administrators as volume and facility needs grow.
• Create location structures, naming conventions, barcode workflows, material-status controls, and standard work.
• Maintain accurate visibility into what inventory exists, where it is located, and whether it is available for use.
• Establish and maintain cycle-counting and physical-inventory programs, investigate discrepancies, identify root causes, and implement corrective actions.
• Own internal logistics and material movement between company facilities, including transfer processes, delivery schedules, chain of custody, transaction accuracy, and reconciliation.
• Develop appropriate controls for serialized, lot-controlled, high-value, consigned, returned, obsolete, and nonconforming material.
• Serve as the business owner for inventory tools and workflows.
• Partner with the systems team to translate operational needs into requirements, prioritize improvements, test new functionality, and drive adoption.
• Create procedures and training that allow inventory operations to be replicated consistently at new facilities.
• Identify inventory risks, shortages, excess material, unidentified material, and process breakdowns before they disrupt operations.

Skills

Inventory management

Warehouse operations

Internal logistics

Strategic design

Hands-on execution

Physical inventory controls

Cross-site travel

Tools

ERP

WMS

MES

Job description

OpenAI is building a new-in-house inventory function in San Francisco, CA. We are seeking an Inventory Manager to establish processes, set up stockrooms, and manage material flow, from receiving to cycle counting, while coordinating with facilities across sites.

You will directly handle core inventory activities, hire and train staff as volume grows, and ensure accurate visibility and control over all stock as the organization scales.