Automation Engineering Manager Jobs in Bothell, WA

About the Team
The Cooperative AI team is scaling OpenAI with OpenAI.
We are building a model-powered scaled automated workforce and knowledge system that evolves and learns alongside a human workforce. By leveraging OpenAI's state-of-the-art models and technologies, some already in production, others still in the lab, we develop systems that reason and work autonomously for a wide variety of operational work.
We leverage real workloads for critical systems across finance, sales, customer support, integrity, product insights, internal operations, and more in order to drive insights into product and industry. We partner closely with internal teams and external customers globally, operating in a hyper-fast feedback loop where many of our users are just a few steps away. This proximity allows us to iterate quickly, validate impact in real time, and accelerate industry impacting learnings and systems builds.
We are a highly multidisciplinary, self-contained team focused on transforming the workplace via smart systems, knowledge, scalable and reliable primitives that apply world-class AI capabilities across domains. Our mission is to learn fast and transform how humans collaborate with AI at scale.
About the Role
We are looking for a hands-on Engineering Manager to lead a small, fast-moving team building AI-powered automation systems that redefine how work gets done across OpenAI.
This role sits at the intersection of applied AI, research, and product engineering. You'll lead a team that builds systems that know how to learn from humans, and carry real workloads across, sales, support, finance, IT, and more, while staying deeply involved in the technical work.
You will operate in a highly iterative environment, deploying systems directly to internal users, gathering rapid feedback, and evolving solutions in real time.
This is a high-ownership role for someone excited about building 0→1 systems, working closely with customers, and shaping how AI transforms operational work at scale.
What You'll Do

• Lead and grow a small team building applied AI systems for internal operations
• Design and build AI-powered automation systems in close proximity to customers
• Stay hands-on in architecture and implementation across the full stack
• Develop evolving systems spanning developer tools, automation platforms, knowledge graphs, and data systems
• Deploy systems directly to internal users and close customers to iterate rapidly based on real-world feedback
• Engage frequently with scaled workforces to understand needs and validate solutions
• Create systems for visibility and learning in hybrid workforces
• Partner with product, research, and ops teams daily

You Might Thrive in This Role If You

• Have 12+ years of experience in engineering, including 3+ years of experience in engineering management, and at least 7 years as an IC engineer
• Are a hands-on builder who enjoys operating across the stack
• Have deep experience applying AI, and are ready to experiment with frontier approaches
• Bring strong technical judgment across systems design, infrastructure, and full-stack development
• Have built developer tools, internal platforms, or workflow automation systems
• Enjoy frequent interaction with customers and thrive in feedback-driven development loops
• Are comfortable with ambiguity and excited to operate in a rapidly evolving space
• Have experience in operationally complex environments (e.g., logistics, support systems, internal tooling, warehouse automation, etc.)

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, voices, and experiences that form the full spectrum of humanity.
We are an equal opportunity employer, and we do not discriminate on the basis of race, religion, color, national origin, sex, sexual orientation, age, veteran status, disability, genetic information, or other applicable legally protected characteristic.
For additional information, please see OpenAI's Affirmative Action and Equal Employment Opportunity Policy Statement.
Background checks for applicants will be administered in accordance with applicable law, and qualified applicants with arrest or conviction records will be considered for employment consistent with those laws, including the San Francisco Fair Chance Ordinance, the Los Angeles County Fair Chance Ordinance for Employers, and the California Fair Chance Act, for US-based candidates. For unincorporated Los Angeles County workers: we reasonably believe that criminal history may have a direct, adverse and negative relationship with the following job duties, potentially resulting in the withdrawal of a conditional offer of employment: protect computer hardware entrusted to you from theft, loss or damage; return all computer hardware in your possession (including the data contained therein) upon termination of employment or end of assignment; and maintain the confidentiality of proprietary, confidential, and non-public information. In addition, job duties require access to secure and protected information technology systems and related data security obligations.
To notify OpenAI that you believe this job posting is non-compliant, please submit a report through this form. No response will be provided to inquiries unrelated to job posting compliance.
We are committed to providing reasonable accommodations to applicants with disabilities, and requests can be made via this link.
OpenAI Global Applicant Privacy Policy
At OpenAI, we believe artificial intelligence has the potential to help people solve immense global challenges, and we want the upside of AI to be widely shared. Join us in shaping the future of technology.