Buyer at OpenAI

Employment Type

Full time

Department

Research

Compensation

• $157K – $206K • Offers Equity

The base pay offered may vary depending on multiple individualized factors, including market location, job-related knowledge, skills, and experience. If the role is non-exempt, overtime pay will be provided consistent with applicable laws. In addition to the salary range listed above, total compensation also includes generous equity, performance-related bonus(es) for eligible employees, and the following benefits.

• Medical, dental, and vision insurance for you and your family, with employer contributions to Health Savings Accounts

• Pre-tax accounts for Health FSA, Dependent Care FSA, and commuter expenses (parking and transit)

• 401(k) retirement plan with employer match

• Paid parental leave (up to 24 weeks for birth parents and 20 weeks for non-birthing parents), plus paid medical and caregiver leave (up to 8 weeks)

• Paid time off: flexible PTO for exempt employees and up to 15 days annually for non-exempt employees

• 13+ paid company holidays, and multiple paid coordinated company office closures throughout the year for focus and recharge, plus paid sick or safe time (1 hour per 30 hours worked, or more, as required by applicable state or local law)

• Mental health and wellness support

• Employer-paid basic life and disability coverage

• Annual learning and development stipend to fuel your professional growth

• Daily meals in our offices, and meal delivery credits as eligible

• Relocation support for eligible employees

• Additional taxable fringe benefits, such as charitable donation matching and wellness stipends, may also be provided.

More details about our benefits are available to candidates during the hiring process.

This role is at-will and OpenAI reserves the right to modify base pay and other compensation components at any time based on individual performance, team or company results, or market conditions.

About the Team
Our Robotics team is focused on unlocking general-purpose robotics and pushing towards AGI-level intelligence in dynamic, real-world settings. Working across the entire model stack, we integrate cutting-edge hardware and software to explore a broad range of robotic form factors. We strive to seamlessly blend high-level AI capabilities with the constraints of physical systems to improve peoples’ lives.

About the Role
We’re seeking a Buyer to support vendor execution and purchase order delivery for finished goods. In this role, you will manage day-to-day vendor interactions, drive purchase orders through procurement and finance processes, and support delivery tracking through handoff to logistics partners. You will work closely with engineering, operations, procurement, and finance teams to ensure purchasing decisions are executed accurately and on time, escalating risks and issues as needed.

This role sits at the execution layer of procurement. Sourcing strategy, supplier selection, and technical specifications are defined by internal stakeholders. This role ensures those decisions are translated into clean purchase orders, reliable vendor execution, and predictable delivery.

This role is based in the San Francisco Bay Area and requires in-person work five days per week.

In this role, you will:

• Support and manage relationships with assigned vendors supplying finished goods.

• Request, validate, and confirm vendor quotes based on defined commercial and technical requirements.

• Ensure incoterms, delivery responsibilities, and handoff points are clearly documented and aligned with vendors.

• Track vendor commitments, promise dates, and delivery status.

• Create purchase orders and drive them through procurement, legal, and finance approval workflows.

• Ensure purchase orders reflect accurate commercial and delivery terms, including pricing, quantities, ship-to locations, incoterms, promise dates, and payment terms.

• Release purchase orders to vendors and confirm acknowledgements and delivery schedules.

• Process purchase order changes related to quantity, timing, scope, or delivery terms as requirements evolve.

• Monitor delivery timelines, flag risks or delays, and engage vendors to clarify changes or issues.

• Escalate delivery, timing, or execution risks as needed and support issue resolution.

• Partner with engineering, operations, and planning teams to align demand and timing.

• Hand off approved purchase orders and vendor details to logistics coordinators for shipment execution.

• Maintain clear communication with stakeholders on status, risks, and changes.

• Ensure procurement and finance systems reflect accurate, up-to-date purchasing data.

You might thrive in this role if you:

• Have experience executing purchase orders and coordinating with external vendors.

• Understand incoterms and how they affect delivery responsibilities, risk transfer, and timing.

• Are comfortable navigating procurement, legal, and finance approval workflows.

• Can manage multiple open orders and vendor commitments with strong attention to detail.

• Communicate clearly across engineering, operations, procurement, and finance teams.

• Follow established processes while escalating risks and issues with good judgment.

Nice to have:

• Experience in hardware, manufacturing, robotics, or technical operations environments.

• Exposure to international suppliers, cross-border shipments, or complex delivery environments.

• Experience working in ERP or procurement systems.

About OpenAI
OpenAI is an AI research and deployment company dedicated to ensuring that general-purpose artificial intelligence benefits all of humanity. We push the boundaries of the capabilities of AI systems and seek to safely deploy them to the world through our products. AI is an extremely powerful tool that must be created with safety and human needs at its core, and to achieve our mission, we must encompass and value the many different perspectives and experiences of our team members.