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OpenAI

Lead Thermal Simulation Engineer

OpenAI
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onsite senior Full time $342K - $445K San Francisco

First indexed 12 Jul 2026

Description

Compensation

$342K – $445K • Offers Equity

The base pay offered may vary depending on multiple individualized factors, including market location, job-related knowledge, skills, and experience. If the role is non-exempt, overtime pay will be provided consistent with applicable laws. In addition to the salary range listed above, total compensation also includes generous equity, performance-related bonus(es) for eligible employees, and the following benefits.

  • Medical, dental, and vision insurance for you and your family, with employer contributions to Health Savings Accounts
  • Pre-tax accounts for Health FSA, Dependent Care FSA, and commuter expenses (parking and transit)
  • 401(k) retirement plan with employer match
  • Paid parental leave (up to 24 weeks for birth parents and 20 weeks for non-birthing parents), plus paid medical and caregiver leave (up to 8 weeks)
  • Paid time off: flexible PTO for exempt employees and up to 15 days annually for non-exempt employees
  • 13+ paid company holidays, and multiple paid coordinated company office closures throughout the year for focus and recharge, plus paid sick or safe time (1 hour per 30 hours worked, or more, as required by applicable state or local law)
  • Mental health and wellness support
  • Employer-paid basic life and disability coverage
  • Annual learning and development stipend to fuel your professional growth
  • Daily meals in our offices, and meal delivery credits as eligible
  • Relocation support for eligible employees
  • Additional taxable fringe benefits, such as charitable donation matching and wellness stipends, may also be provided.

About the Team

Our Robotics team is focused on unlocking general-purpose robotics and pushing towards AGI-level intelligence in dynamic, real-world settings. Working across the entire model stack, we integrate cutting-edge hardware and software to explore a broad range of robotic form factors. We strive to seamlessly blend high-level AI capabilities with the constraints of physical systems to improve people's lives.

About the Role

We are seeking a lead thermal simulation engineer to help accelerate the design and development of next-generation robotic systems through modeling, simulation, and analysis. You will work closely with mechanical, electrical, controls, and robotics engineers to evaluate designs before hardware is built, identify risks early, and guide critical architecture decisions.

This role spans structural and thermal analysis and design across robotic subsystems including actuators, mechanisms, structures, electronics, and integrated systems. You will develop simulation workflows that improve engineering velocity, increase confidence in design decisions, and help us build more capable, reliable, and manufacturable robotic platforms.

Responsibilities

  • Perform thermal simulations to assess heat generation, cooling strategies, thermal interfaces, and system-level thermal performance
  • Partner with mechanical, electrical, and controls engineers to influence design decisions early in development
  • Build simulation models to evaluate robotic actuators, transmissions, mechanisms, structures, soft goods, and integrated assemblies
  • Correlate simulation results with physical testing and develop methodologies to improve model accuracy
  • Support architecture trade studies by evaluating design concepts before hardware is built
  • Develop simulation workflows, standards, and best practices that scale across the robotics organization
  • Identify technical risks and recommend design changes to improve performance, reliability, and manufacturability
  • Support root cause investigations by combining test data, failure analysis, and simulation results
  • Contribute to long-term simulation capabilities including multiphysics modeling, digital twins, and system-level analysis

Requirements

  • Enjoy using first-principles engineering and simulation to solve complex multidisciplinary problems
  • Are comfortable operating in ambiguous environments where simulation and design helps guide architecture decisions rather than simply validate finished designs
  • Have strong intuition for mechanical systems and can connect simulation results to real-world hardware behavior
  • Balance modeling rigor with practical engineering judgment and development speed
  • Enjoy collaborating closely with hardware teams and influencing products from concept through deployment

Preferred Qualifications

  • Experience performing thermal simulation and design of complex electromechanical systems
  • Proficiency with commercial CAE tools such as Simcenter 3D, Abaqus, Ansys, Nastran, LS-DYNA, COMSOL, or equivalent platforms
  • Experience correlating simulation models with physical test data and validation campaigns for high volume products
  • Familiarity with robotic systems, actuators, mechanisms, power electronics, batteries, or other highly integrated hardware systems
  • Experience developing simulation methodologies, automation tools, or organization-wide thermal workflows
This listing is enriched and indexed by YubHub. To apply, use the employer's original posting: https://jobs.ashbyhq.com/openai/cebd0a1e-2724-4beb-8ed0-d9c7934d1222