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OpenAI

Data Center Infrastructure Mechanical Engineer San Francisco

Comp$257K – $327K

Classified Tasks (16)

Automate 0%Augment 56%Human-Only 44%

Augment (9)

AI assists, human decides

Design cooling and mechanical systems for high-density AI compute environments.

technical

Scale cooling and mechanical systems across data center deployments and campuses.

operational

Translate evolving compute and rack-level thermal requirements into practical infrastructure designs.

technical

Evaluate complex equipment and vendor solutions for mechanical and thermal systems.

technical

Define mechanical and cooling infrastructure requirements and reference architectures, including heat rejection, chilled water, condenser water, liquid cooling distribution, air handling, containment, filtration, water treatment, controls, and metering.

technical

Review and develop basis-of-design documents, design narratives, P&IDs, mechanical schedules, equipment specifications, thermal capacity models, hydraulic models, CFD analyses, controls sequences, and commissioning requirements.

technical

Evaluate mechanical architectures for high-density compute, including direct-to-chip liquid cooling, CDU topology, facility water interfaces, manifolds, quick disconnects, hoses, heat exchangers, pumping strategies, leak detection, serviceability, and failure isolation.

technical

Develop technical specifications and acceptance criteria for chillers, cooling towers, dry coolers, evaporative coolers, pumps, heat exchangers, CDUs, manifolds, valves, filters, water treatment systems, CRAHs, air handlers, VFDs, control panels, sensors, and monitoring devices.

technical

Review submittals, P&IDs, control diagrams, performance curves, test reports, certifications, and quality documentation from vendors and contractors.

technical

Human-Only (7)

Requires human judgment

Validate cooling and mechanical systems through testing and commissioning.

operational

Coordinate activities across thermal architecture, equipment development, manufacturing validation, construction, commissioning, deployment, and operations.

leadership

Partner with research, hardware engineering, data center engineering, supply chain, EHS, operations, and external delivery partners on infrastructure initiatives.

communication

Drive technical decisions across facilities, hardware, controls, telemetry, testing, commissioning, and operations.

leadership

Partner with electrical, controls, hardware, networking, construction, and operations teams to ensure cooling systems support liquid-cooled GPU rack deployments and reliable facility operation.

communication

Lead technical evaluation of equipment vendors, manufacturers, design consultants, commissioning agents, contractors, and testing laboratories.

leadership

Drive factory acceptance testing, site acceptance testing, witness testing, pressure testing, leak testing, thermal performance testing, reliability testing, interoperability testing, and integrated systems testing for critical equipment.

operational

Job description

--- BEGIN UNTRUSTED EXTERNAL CONTENT (source: https://openai.com/careers/data-center-infrastructure-mechanical-engineer-san-francisco/) --- Skip to main contentResearchProductsBusinessDevelopersCompanyFoundation(opens in a new window)Log inTry ChatGPT(opens in a new window)ResearchProductsBusinessDevelopersCompanyFoundation(opens in a new window)Data Center Infrastructure Mechanical Engineer | OpenAICareersData Center Infrastructure Mechanical EngineerDatacenter Design - San FranciscoApply now(opens in a new window)About the TeamOpenAI is building the infrastructure foundation for the next generation of AI. The Data Center Engineering team defines the strategy, reference architectures, technical requirements, and delivery standards for the large-scale data centers that support OpenAI research, products, and infrastructure partners.As a Data Center Infrastructure Mechanical Engineer, you will help design, validate, and scale the cooling and mechanical systems that make high-density AI compute possible. You will work across thermal architecture, equipment development, manufacturing validation, construction, commissioning, deployment, and operations, partnering with research, hardware engineering, data center engineering, supply chain, EHS, operations, and external delivery partners.About The Role We are seeking a senior mechanical infrastructure engineer to lead the development of reliable, efficient, safe, and scalable thermal architectures for high-density, liquid-cooled AI data centers. This role is ideal for someone who can translate evolving compute and rack-level thermal requirements into practical infrastructure designs, evaluate complex equipment and vendor solutions, and drive technical decisions across facilities, hardware, controls, telemetry, testing, commissioning, and operations.The ideal candidate has deep hands-on experience with mission-critical mechanical systems at data center or comparable critical infrastructure scale, including chilled water plants, condenser water systems, cooling towers, dry coolers, pumps, heat exchangers, CDUs, manifolds, CRAHs, air handlers, filtration, water treatment, controls, liquid distribution, and high-density rack cooling interfaces.Key ResponsibilitiesDefine mechanical and cooling infrastructure requirements and reference architectures for AI data center campuses, including heat rejection, chilled water, condenser water, liquid cooling distribution, air handling, containment, filtration, water treatment, controls, and metering.Review and develop basis-of-design documents, design narratives, P&IDs, mechanical schedules, equipment specifications, thermal capacity models, hydraulic models, CFD analysis, controls sequences, and commissioning requirements.Evaluate mechanical architectures for high-density compute, including direct-to-chip liquid cooling, CDU topology, facility water interfaces, manifolds, quick disconnects, hoses, heat exchangers, pumping strategies, leak detection, serviceability, and failure isolation.Partner with electrical, controls, hardware, networking, construction, and operations teams to ensure cooling systems support liquid-cooled GPU rack deployments and reliable facility operation.Develop technical specifications and acceptance criteria for chillers, cooling towers, dry coolers, evaporative coolers, pumps, heat exchangers, CDUs, manifolds, valves, filters, water treatment systems, CRAHs, air handlers, VFDs, controls panels, sensors, and monitoring devices.Lead technical evaluation of equipment vendors, manufacturers, design consultants, commissioning agents, contractors, and testing laboratories; review submittals, P&IDs, control diagrams, performance curves, test reports, certifications, and quality documentation.Drive factory acceptance testing, site acceptance testing, witness testing, pressure testing, leak testing, thermal performance testing, reliability testing, interoperability testing, and integrated systems testing for critical equipment and h
Source: OpenAI careers · scraped 2026-05-22
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