Forward Deployed Engineer (FDE) - SF

About the team

OpenAI’s Forward Deployed Engineering team partners with customers to turn research breakthroughs into production systems. We operate at the intersection of customer delivery and core platform development.

About the role

Forward Deployed Engineers (FDEs) lead complex end-to-end deployments of frontier models in production alongside our most strategic customers. You will own discovery, technical scoping, system design, build, and production rollout, partnering directly with customer engineering and domain teams.

You will measure success through production adoption, measurable workflow impact, and eval-driven feedback that changes product and model roadmaps. You’ll work closely with our Product, Research, Partnerships, GRC, Security, and GTM teams.

This role is based in San Francisco. We use a hybrid work model of 3 days in the office per week. We offer relocation assistance. Travel up to 50% is required.

In this role you will

• Own technical delivery across multiple deployments from first prototype to stable production
• Build full-stack systems that deliver customer value and sharpen how we learn
• Embed closely with customer teams, understand their needs, and guide adoption of what you build
• Scope work, sequence delivery, and remove blockers early
• Make trade-offs between scope, speed, and quality; adjust plans to protect delivery
• Contribute directly in the code when progress or clarity depends on it
• Codify working patterns into tools, playbooks, or building blocks that others can use
• Share field feedback that helps Research and Product understand where the models succeed and where they can improve
• Keep teams moving through clarity and follow-through

You might thrive in this role if you

• Bring 5+ years of engineering or technical deployment experience that includes customer-facing work
• Have scoped and delivered complex systems in fast-moving or ambiguous environments
• Write and review production-grade code across frontend and backend using Python, JavaScript, or comparable stacks
• Have built or deployed systems powered by LLMs or generative models and understand how model behaviour affects product experience
• Simplify complexity and make fast, sound decisions under pressure
• Communicate clearly with engineers, product teams, and customer stakeholders
• Spot risks early and adjust without slowing down
• Model calm and judgment when the stakes are high