Software Engineer, API Frontiers
OpenAI · New York City
About this role
## About the Team API Frontiers turns OpenAI’s frontier models into production APIs that developers can use to build reliable products and agents. We own the core path connecting models to developers through the **Responses API**, with a focus on **safety, reliability, and speed**. Working closely with **Research, Safety, Codex,** and other API teams, we bring new model capabilities into production and improve them through developer feedback. ## About the Role We’re looking for a **backend software engineer** to build and operate the services behind the **Responses API**. You’ll shape API behavior, bring new capabilities from research into production, and make long-running agent workflows dependable and fast. This role combines **distributed systems engineering** with **product judgment**: designing useful developer interfaces, managing staged rollouts, and following production issues through to durable fixes. ## You Will - Design, build, and operate **APIs and backend services** that bring frontier model capabilities to developers. - Partner with **Research, Safety, Codex,** and API teams to define API behavior and deliver **safe, staged launches**. - Build API capabilities for **agent workflows**, including task delegation, context sharing, and parallel execution. - Strengthen long-running request reliability across **timeouts, cancellation, streaming,** and **background execution**. - Improve request-processing performance and **tail latency** through profiling, efficient systems code, and persistent connections. - Turn developer feedback and production failures into better **observability, diagnostics,** and lasting product improvements. ## Your Background (Might Look Like) - **5+ years** building and operating backend services or developer-facing APIs in production. - Strong fundamentals, including **distributed systems, concurrency,** and **asynchronous execution**. - Ability to diagnose production failures and performance bottlenecks using **observability data** and **profiling**. - Product judgment and developer empathy—translating complex capabilities into clear, dependable APIs. - Ownership of ambiguous technical problems, from defining an approach through shipping and iterating. - Clear communication and effective collaboration across engineering, research, product, and safety. - Experience with **Rust**, **streaming protocols/WebSockets**, or long-running workflow systems is a plus. ## About OpenAI OpenAI is an AI research and deployment company dedicated to ensuring general-purpose AI benefits all of humanity. We push the boundaries of AI capabilities and seek to safely deploy them through our products. OpenAI is an **equal opportunity employer**. For additional information, see OpenAI’s EEO policy statement: https://cdn.openai.com/policies/eeo-policy-statement.pdf (Background checks and accommodations information are available in the original posting.)
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