Strategic Sourcing Manager, High Speed Interconnects

OpenAI•San Francisco, CA

16d•Hybrid

About The Position

About the Team OpenAI’s Hardware organization develops silicon and system-level solutions designed for the unique demands of advanced AI workloads. The team is responsible for building the next generation of AI-native silicon & systems while working closely with software and research partners to co-design hardware tightly integrated with AI models. In addition to delivering unique AI systems for OpenAI’s supercomputing infrastructure, the team also creates custom design tools and methodologies that accelerate innovation and enable hardware optimized specifically for AI. About the Role We’re seeking a seasoned Strategic Sourcing Manager, High Speed Interconnects to define and manage vendor and partner engagements for the hardware design team. Reporting to the Head of Partnerships & Strategic Sourcing, you’ll leverage your expertise in AI full-rack system supply chains to design sourcing strategies, negotiate agreements, and manage critical supplier relationships. Your work will directly enable the hardware design team to expand compute, networking, and storage capabilities for OpenAI’s infrastructure. This role is based in San Francisco, CA. We use a hybrid work model of 3 days in the office per week and offer relocation assistance to new employees.

Requirements

Experience: 10+ years in technology procurement, with depth in hardware and cloud services at fast-growing technology companies.
Technical Credibility: Ability to engage engineering teams on technical requirements and translate them into sourcing strategies.
Supplier & Stakeholder Management: Proven track record of negotiating custom agreements and maintaining strong, trust-based supplier partnerships.
Strategic & Analytical Insight: Skilled at developing long-term sourcing strategies, managing cost/risk tradeoffs, and generating actionable analytics to guide decisions.
Collaboration & Leadership: Adept at working cross-functionally and proactively defining & refining procurement practices to drive efficiency and impact.
Mission-Driven Focus: Commitment to supporting OpenAI’s mission of ensuring artificial general intelligence benefits all of humanity.

Responsibilities

Devise and implement sourcing strategies for hardware and related services—including cloud—aligned with OpenAI’s financial, operational, and technology goals.
Lead RFPs, supplier evaluations, and partner selection with clear criteria and structured engagement models.
Manage key supplier relationships end-to-end, including contract negotiations, renewals, and performance management against defined KPIs.
Partner with engineering, finance, legal, and security teams to ensure sourcing decisions meet technical requirements, budget approvals, compliance, and risk considerations.
Drive efficiency through process design and sourcing systems, ensuring data-driven decision-making and continuous improvement.
Partner with business system teams to define ERP, MRP, PLM system requirements
Build long-term partnerships and identify opportunities for strategic investments across the hardware supply landscape.