OpenAI

Software Engineer, Codex -Enterprise Controls

OpenAI6 days ago
Location

San Francisco

Type

Full Time

Salary

USD 230,000 – 385,000

Level

Mid

Role

Backend Engineer

Posted

Jul 13, 2026

Full TimeMid

The role

Summary

As a Software Engineer on the Codex Enterprise Controls team at OpenAI, you'll design and operate backend systems that enable enterprises to safely deploy and govern AI-powered coding capabilities at scale. This role requires strong expertise in backend engineering, security architecture, identity systems, and enterprise infrastructure—with end-to-end ownership of systems spanning encryption, access controls, policy enforcement, and audit logging for some of the world's most sensitive codebases and organizational data.

What you'll do

Design and Build Enterprise Backend Systems: Architect and implement production-grade backend systems responsible for data protection, including encryption, key management, access controls, data isolation, and retention mechanisms. These systems will directly safeguard enterprise customer proprietary codebases and sensitive organizational data flowing through Codex.
Develop the Codex Enterprise Control Plane: Design and operate the comprehensive control plane enabling enterprise administrators to configure, enforce, and monitor how Codex capabilities are deployed and utilized across users, teams, projects, and organizational environments, ensuring governance at scale.
Build Policy and Governance Infrastructure: Create sophisticated policy systems allowing enterprises to enable or disable specific Codex features, define organizational constraints, implement capability-based access controls, and safely orchestrate rollouts of new AI-powered workflows while maintaining compliance.
Develop Observable and Scalable Services: Build reliable, highly observable, and horizontally scalable microservices across identity and authentication, authorization frameworks, configuration management, comprehensive audit logging, compliance tracking, and enterprise administration interfaces.
Cross-Functional Collaboration and Translation: Partner with product, security, infrastructure, go-to-market, and customer success teams to translate complex and often ambiguous enterprise requirements into clean, durable product capabilities and platform abstractions that balance security with usability.
Define Enterprise-Grade Standards for AI Systems: Contribute to establishing what enterprise-grade reliability, security, and governance means for AI software engineering systems as Codex becomes an integrated trusted teammate within Fortune 500 organizations and large technical teams globally.

What we look for

Technical

Backend System Design and ArchitectureDemonstrated expertise in designing, implementing, and operating distributed systems at scale with focus on reliability, performance, and observability patterns that production systems require.
Production Backend Programming LanguagesProfessional proficiency in one or more backend languages such as Python, Go, Rust, Java, or C++ with demonstrated ability to write clean, maintainable, well-tested code in large systems.
Security Engineering FundamentalsStrong understanding of security architecture, encryption algorithms, key management systems, secure coding practices, cryptographic protocols, and threat modeling for protecting sensitive data in distributed systems.
Identity and Access Management SystemsHands-on experience implementing or working with enterprise authentication and authorization systems including SSO/SAML/OIDC protocols, OAuth 2.0, SCIM provisioning, and Role-Based Access Control (RBAC) patterns.
Enterprise Governance and Compliance SystemsExperience building audit logging infrastructure, compliance controls, data governance frameworks, retention policies, and systems for tracking and reporting on sensitive operations for regulated environments.
API Design and Microservices ArchitectureCapability to design clean, well-versioned APIs and develop loosely coupled microservices that can scale independently while maintaining strong consistency guarantees for security-sensitive operations.

Education

Computer Science or Related FieldBachelor's degree in Computer Science, Computer Engineering, Software Engineering, or equivalent professional experience demonstrating deep technical fundamentals in distributed systems and software architecture.

Experience

Backend Systems Development ExperienceMinimum 3-5 years of professional experience designing and implementing backend systems for production environments, with proven track record of shipping features that scale to millions of operations.
Security or Infrastructure EngineeringSpecific experience with security systems, identity infrastructure, encryption systems, or enterprise platform engineering where understanding of compliance requirements and security best practices is essential.
Enterprise Software DevelopmentPrior experience working with enterprise customers or building enterprise-focused products where understanding of organizational complexity, compliance requirements, and governance needs directly informed technical decisions.
Ambiguous Problem-Solving in Fast-Moving TeamsComfortable operating in 0-to-1 environments where technical and product requirements evolve rapidly, with ability to make sound architectural decisions despite incomplete information and shifting priorities.

Skills

Required skills

Backend Software EngineeringMastery of backend engineering fundamentals including distributed systems concepts, concurrency patterns, performance optimization, and debugging complex production systems.
Cryptography and Encryption SystemsWorking knowledge of encryption algorithms, key management infrastructure, certificate management, TLS/SSL protocols, and secure data handling patterns for protecting sensitive information.
Identity and Access ControlPractical expertise with authentication protocols (SAML, OAuth, OIDC), authorization patterns (RBAC, ABAC), directory services, and implementing principle of least privilege in complex systems.
Cloud Infrastructure and DevOpsExperience with containerization (Docker), orchestration (Kubernetes), cloud platforms (AWS, GCP, Azure), infrastructure-as-code, and deploying applications at scale with proper observability.
Observability and MonitoringAbility to design and implement comprehensive logging, metrics collection, distributed tracing, and alerting systems that provide visibility into system behavior and enable rapid incident response.
Audit Logging and ComplianceUnderstanding of audit trail design, immutable logging infrastructure, compliance frameworks, data retention requirements, and building systems that satisfy regulatory and security audit needs.

Nice to have

AI/ML Systems ExperienceFamiliarity with infrastructure and governance challenges specific to AI systems, including model deployment, data governance, prompt handling, and controlling access to sensitive model capabilities.
Policy Engines and Rules SystemsExperience designing or implementing policy evaluation engines, rules engines, or configuration management systems that allow non-technical users to define and enforce organizational rules.
Multi-Tenancy ArchitecturePrior experience designing multi-tenant systems with strong data isolation guarantees, tenant customization, fair resource allocation, and billing systems that handle complex organizational hierarchies.
OpenAI or LLM Platform ExperiencePrior experience with OpenAI's APIs or other large language model platforms, understanding of LLM capabilities, limitations, and security implications of deploying LLMs in enterprise contexts.
SOC 2 or Enterprise ComplianceFirst-hand experience building systems that achieve or maintain SOC 2 Type II certification, HIPAA compliance, or other enterprise compliance frameworks that require rigorous control implementation.
Go or Rust ProgrammingStrong proficiency in Go or Rust specifically, given the performance, concurrency, and memory safety requirements of building enterprise control plane infrastructure at scale.

Compensation & benefits

Salary

USD 230,000 – 385,000 (annual)

Stock options

Available

Benefits

Comprehensive Health Insurance

Medical, dental, and vision coverage with competitive premiums and coverage for preventive care, chosen medical procedures, and specialist consultations.

Retirement Planning

401(k) retirement plans with company matching contributions enabling tax-advantaged savings for long-term financial security.

Equity and Stock Options

Meaningful equity grants aligning employee and company interests, providing ownership stake and long-term wealth creation potential as OpenAI's AI products reach global scale.

Paid Time Off

Generous vacation, sick leave, and personal days enabling work-life balance, mental health, and flexibility for personal circumstances.

Professional Development

Learning budgets, conference attendance, internal training programs, and opportunities to work on cutting-edge AI systems and contribute to research publications.

Flexible Work Environment

Collaborative office spaces with modern amenities, technical infrastructure, and flexible work arrangements supporting both focused technical work and team collaboration.

Life and Disability Insurance

Life insurance coverage and long-term disability protection providing financial security for employees and their families.

Mental Health and Wellness

Access to mental health counseling, wellness programs, fitness resources, and employee assistance programs supporting overall wellbeing.

Commuter Benefits

Pre-tax commuter benefits for public transportation, parking, or vanpool arrangements in the San Francisco Bay Area.

Interview process

  1. 1
    Initial Screening and Phone Screen — Initial conversation with a recruiter to discuss background, experience with backend systems and security engineering, career motivation, and alignment with the Codex Enterprise Controls mission. Typically 30-45 minutes.
  2. 2
    Technical Phone Screen — Detailed technical discussion with a backend engineer on the team covering distributed systems design, backend architecture decisions, and approaches to solving complex backend engineering problems. Candidates should be prepared to discuss specific projects and technical tradeoffs.
  3. 3
    System Design Interview — Live technical interview focusing on designing large-scale backend systems with security, compliance, and observability requirements. You'll be asked to architect solutions for problems like building enterprise audit logging, implementing access control systems, or designing a multi-tenant control plane.
  4. 4
    Security and Infrastructure Deep Dive — Technical interview exploring expertise in security engineering, encryption, identity systems, compliance frameworks, and enterprise infrastructure patterns. Expect questions about threat modeling, key rotation strategies, and implementing compliance controls.
  5. 5
    Behavioral and Team Fit — Conversation with a hiring manager or senior team member focused on communication style, working in ambiguous environments, cross-functional collaboration, and your approach to balancing security, velocity, and technical debt in fast-moving teams.
  6. 6
    Leadership and Vision Discussion — Final round with a senior engineer or team lead exploring your vision for enterprise-grade AI systems, how you approach building foundational platform capabilities, and your perspective on the intersection of AI adoption and enterprise governance.
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OpenAI

OpenAI

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OpenAI is an American artificial intelligence research organization developing advanced AI models like GPT. Focused on ensuring AI benefits humanity, it creates tools for natural language processing and generative AI applications.

San Francisco, California, United StatesFounded 2015openai.com

Tech Stack

Languages
PythonGoRust
Frameworks
FastAPI or FlaskgRPCSQLAlchemy
Databases
PostgreSQLRedisElasticsearch
Tools
KubernetesDockerTerraform or CloudFormationPrometheus and GrafanaELK Stack or Cloud Logging
Other
OAuth 2.0 and OpenID ConnectSAML 2.0SCIMEncryption Standards (AES-256, RSA)TLS/SSL Protocols

Interview Guides

5 guides available for OpenAI

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