Forward Deployed Engineer

About The Team

OpenAI’s Forward Deployed Engineering team partners with customers to turn research breakthroughs into production systems, operating at the intersection of customer delivery and core platform development.

About The Role

Forward Deployed Engineers (FDEs) at OpenAI lead complex, end-to-end deployments of frontier models in production with strategic customers. This involves owning discovery, technical scoping, system design, build, and production rollout, working directly with customer engineering and domain teams.

Success is measured by production adoption, measurable workflow impact, and eval-driven feedback that influences product and model roadmaps. You will collaborate closely with Product, Research, Partnerships, GRC, Security, and GTM teams.

This hybrid role is based in Munich, requiring 3 days in the office per week. Relocation assistance is offered, and travel up to 50% is required.

Key Responsibilities

• Own technical delivery across multiple deployments from first prototype to stable production.
• Build full-stack systems that deliver customer value and refine learning processes.
• Embed closely with customer teams, understand their needs, and guide adoption of built solutions.
• Scope work, sequence delivery, and proactively remove blockers.
• Make informed trade-offs between scope, speed, and quality, adjusting plans to ensure delivery.
• Contribute directly to the code when necessary for progress or clarity.
• Codify working patterns into reusable tools, playbooks, or building blocks.
• Share field feedback to help Research and Product improve models.
• Ensure team momentum through clear communication and follow-through.

What You'll Bring

• 5+ years of engineering or technical deployment experience, including customer-facing work.
• Proven ability to scope and deliver complex systems in fast-moving or ambiguous environments.
• Proficiency in writing and reviewing production-grade code across frontend and backend using Python, JavaScript, or comparable stacks.
• Experience building or deploying systems powered by LLMs or generative models, with an understanding of how model behavior impacts product experience.
• A knack for simplifying complexity and making fast, sound decisions under pressure.
• Clear communication skills with engineers, product teams, and customer stakeholders.
• Ability to spot risks early and adapt quickly without hindering progress.
• A calm and judicious approach when facing high-stakes situations.

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 AI capabilities and safely deploy them through our products, emphasizing safety and human needs at our core.

Key skills/competency

• Technical Deployment
• System Design
• Production Rollout
• Full-stack Development
• Large Language Models (LLMs)
• Generative Models
• Python
• JavaScript
• Customer Engagement
• Problem Solving