Infrastructure Operations & Sustainability Lead

About the Team OpenAI’s Industrial Compute organization is building and operating the infrastructure required to support frontier AI at unprecedented scale. The organization works across data center development, power, design and construction, hardware, supply chain, deployment, facilities operations, and external partnerships. As this infrastructure footprint grows, OpenAI must ensure that sustainability, operational reliability, and responsible development are incorporated into infrastructure decisions from the beginning rather than addressed as separate downstream initiatives. About the Role We are seeking an Infrastructure Operations & Sustainability Lead to develop and execute the sustainability strategy for OpenAI’s global infrastructure portfolio. This role will translate environmental priorities and external commitments into practical operating requirements across site selection, data center design, construction, equipment procurement, deployment, and ongoing operations. You will build the frameworks, metrics, governance, and cross-functional programs required to improve environmental performance while preserving the speed, reliability, and scalability demanded by OpenAI’s infrastructure roadmap. The role will partner closely with infrastructure operations, site development, engineering, construction, power, hardware, supply chain, finance, legal, public policy, government affairs, communications, and external infrastructure partners. This is a senior leadership role requiring infrastructure fluency, sustainability expertise, executive judgment, and the ability to drive complex initiatives across organizational boundaries. Key Responsibilities Develop and maintain a comprehensive sustainability strategy for OpenAI’s global compute infrastructure. Translate sustainability objectives into actionable requirements for site selection, design, construction, procurement, commissioning, and operations. Establish decision frameworks that balance environmental impact with infrastructure reliability, deployment speed, cost, and scalability. Develop strategies addressing operational and embodied carbon, water stewardship, materials, construction impacts, waste, circularity, and equipment lifecycle management. Partner with data center engineering and operations teams to identify practical improvements in infrastructure efficiency, resource use, resilience, and operational performance. Incorporate sustainability considerations into self-build, colocation, cloud, and strategic infrastructure-partner decisions. Establish measurable goals, operating metrics, dashboards, and governance mechanisms for infrastructure sustainability programs. Improve the quality, consistency, and auditability of environmental and operational data across internal teams and external partners. Work with hardware, manufacturing, and supply chain teams to develop supplier requirements and lifecycle strategies for infrastructure equipment. Evaluate emerging technologies, design approaches, and operating practices and determine which should move from pilot programs into scaled deployment. Develop business cases that clearly communicate environmental impact, implementation requirements, cost, schedule, and operational tradeoffs. Partner with Public Policy and Government Affairs on infrastructure-related sustainability positions, regulatory developments, and external engagement. Represent OpenAI in conversations with infrastructure partners, industry organizations, policymakers, community stakeholders, and other external parties. Provide executive leadership with clear assessments of progress, material risks, strategic choices, and recommended actions. Build repeatable playbooks that allow sustainability practices to scale across sites, geographies, infrastructure partners, and technology generations. Qualifications 12+ years of experience in sustainability, infrastructure operations, environmental strategy, data center infrastructure, the built environment, or a related field. Experience leading sustainability or operational-improvement programs across a large, complex, and geographically distributed organization. Demonstrated ability to translate high-level environmental objectives into practical engineering, procurement, construction, and operational requirements. Strong understanding of carbon, water, materials, waste, circularity, and lifecycle considerations within physical infrastructure. Experience building metrics, governance systems, and executive reporting for complex operational programs. Ability to evaluate technical, financial, environmental, regulatory, and reputational tradeoffs together. Strong cross-functional leadership and the ability to influence senior stakeholders without relying on direct authority. Experience working with external partners, suppliers, regulators, policymakers, or industry organizations. Excellent written and verbal communication, including the ability to make complex subjects clear and decision-ready