Applied AI Engineering Manager, Startups | Greenfield

We are looking for an Applied AI Engineering Manager, Startups, Greenfield to lead and scale our Applied AI Engineering team. The Applied AI Engineering team partners closely with customers to help them move from experimentation to production with OpenAI’s technologies. Responsibilities: Craft and continuously refine the strategic vision and operating model for the Startups Applied AI Engineering team Lead, mentor, and grow a team of high-performing technical ICs supporting startup customers Help startups move from early experimentation to production usage Partner closely with Sales to determine where technical engagement can accelerate adoption Represent the technical voice of startup customers Translate recurring startup needs into repeatable playbooks and assets Serve as a senior technical escalation point for priority startup customers Balance urgent customer needs with OpenAI’s broader product and platform priorities Coach Applied AI Engineers on technical quality and customer judgment Work closely with VC Partnerships, Marketing, and developer-facing teams Requirements: Proven experience founding, scaling, or operating within early-stage startups Strong track record of building and leading technical, customer-facing teams Strong technical depth across APIs, platform products, AI/ML systems, and production deployment considerations Experience creating scalable operating models Comfortable working directly with founders, CTOs, and technical executives Success will be measured by: A strong cadence of successful customer sprints and production deployments Strong Product and Research feedback loops Sustained growth in startup usage High-quality customer stories and referenceable startup wins Creation of repeatable technical programmes and deployment patterns Job Data by YubHub .