OpenAI· Intelligence & Investigations· San Francisco
Strategic Risk Analyst, Behavioral & Psychological Risk
Comp$288K – $320K
Classified Tasks (18)
Automate 0%Augment 100%Human-Only 0%
Augment (18)
AI assists, human decides
Analyze how users think, feel, and behave in interaction with AI systems in high-risk contexts such as self-harm, manipulation, coercion, and influence
analytical
Translate behavioral insights into decision-ready risk assessments, mitigation strategies, and product guidance
operational
Proactively identify areas where analytical insight is most needed and anticipate emerging product, policy, and safety questions
leadership
Focus analytical efforts on producing analyses that shape critical product, policy, and safety decisions
analytical
Partner with investigators, engineers, policy, and trust & safety teams to shape understanding and mitigation of potential risks in human-AI interactions
communication
Develop insights into how AI systems are used in complex or high-risk situations by identifying recurring patterns and emerging trends
analytical
Synthesize behavioral, psychological, and intelligence signals into clear narratives about user needs, system dynamics, and potential areas of risk or vulnerability
communication
Produce decision-ready briefs and assessments that inform product, safety, and policy decisions
communication
Develop and refine behavioral risk frameworks, taxonomies, and indicators such as severity models, escalation pathways, and psychological harm categories
analytical
Identify early indicators of emerging issues and assess whether observed patterns represent meaningful safety concerns
analytical
Prioritize and inform appropriate mitigations based on assessments of emerging safety concerns
operational
Assess the effectiveness of mitigations—including product changes, safeguards, and guidance—using behavioral evidence and real-world outcomes
analytical
Contribute to incident reviews and post-incident analysis by providing behavioral perspectives for root cause analysis and prevention
analytical
Translate academic and clinical literature into practical safeguards, policies, and product decisions
analytical
Correlate internal signals, external intelligence, and real-world events into clear, actionable priorities for safety and product decision-makers
analytical
Identify emerging abuse trends and analyze associated risks to maintain a safe online ecosystem
analytical
Work with internal and external partners to implement effective mitigation strategies to protect against misuse
operational
Turn psychological signals and patterns into structured judgments, early indicators, and actionable recommendations
analytical
Job description
Strategic Risk Analyst, Behavioral & Psychological Risk | OpenAI Careers ## Strategic Risk Analyst, Behavioral & Psychological Risk Intelligence & Investigations - San Francisco Apply now(opens in a new window) **About the team** The Intelligence and Investigations team seeks to rapidly identify and mitigate abuse and strategic risks to ensure a safe online ecosystem. We are dedicated to identifying emerging abuse trends, analyzing risks, and working with our internal and external partners to implement effective mitigation strategies to protect against misuse. Our efforts contribute to OpenAI's overarching goal of developing AI that benefits humanity. We are building a horizontal “radar” for AI abuse and strategic risk—correlating internal signals, external intelligence, and real-world events into clear, actionable priorities for OpenAI’s safety and product decision-makers. **About the Role** As a **Strategic Risk Analyst, Behavioral & Psychological Risk**, you will bring deep expertise in human behavior to our central view of risk across OpenAI’s products and platforms. You will analyze how users think, feel, and behave in interaction with AI systems—especially in high-risk contexts such as self-harm, manipulation, coercion, and influence—and translate these insights into **decision-ready risk assessments, mitigation strategies, and product guidance**. This role bridges **clinical/behavioral expertise and intelligence analysis**, turning psychological signals and patterns into structured judgments, early indicators, and actionable recommendations. A key part of this role is proactively identifying where analytical insight is most needed, anticipating emerging product, policy, and safety questions, and focusing efforts on analyses that shape critical decisions. You will partner closely with investigators, engineers, policy, and trust & safety teams to shape how we understand and mitigate potential risks in human-AI interactions. **In this role, you will** * Develop insights into how AI systems are used in complex or high-risk situations (e.g., self-harm, suicidal ideation, substance-use escalation, and threats of violence), identifying recurring patterns and emerging trends that help guide product, safety, and policy decisions. * Synthesize behavioral, psychological, and intelligence signals into clear narratives about user needs, system dynamics, and potential areas of risk or vulnerability. * Produce decision-ready briefs and assessments that inform product, safety, and policy decisions. * Develop and refine behavioral risk frameworks, taxonomies, and indicators (e.g., severity models, escalation pathways, psychological harm categories). * Identify early indicators of emerging issues and assess whether observed patterns represent meaningful safety concerns, helping prioritize and inform appropriate mitigations. * Assess the effectiveness of mitigations—such as product changes, safeguards, and guidance—using behavioral evidence and real-world outcomes. * Contribute to incident reviews and post-incident analysis by bringing a behavioral perspective to root cause analysis and prevention. * Bridge research and operations, translating academic and clinical literature into practical safeguards, policies, and product decisions. **You might thrive in this role if you:** * Bring 5+ years in forensic, clinical, trust and safety, or applied academic settings assessing risk of violence, self-harm, or addiction, with strong mixed-methods research skills. * Have familiarity with AI systems, language models, or human-AI interaction dynamics, and are interested in applying psychological expertise to emerging AI risks (experience working on AI safety, trust & safety, or related domains is a plus). * Can translate human behavior into structured intelligence, connecting individual cases to system-level patterns and risks. * Are comfortable working across qualitative and quantitative in