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Development Planner, Industrial Compute

OpenAI· Scaling
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Remote$225k - $385k + equityFull-timePosted 1mo ago

About the role

Development Planner responsible for portfolio-level planning for future data center shell capacity, translating compute-demand forecasts and development schedules into strategic capacity decisions across self-build, lease, colocation, and development-partner pathways.

Responsibilities

  • Develop and maintain a multi-year portfolio plan for data center shell capacity across priority geographies.
  • Translate compute forecasts, IT-load requirements, rack-density assumptions, power schedules, cooling requirements, and deployment timelines into site and building requirements.
  • Determine when shell capacity must be secured, designed, constructed, commissioned, and ready for technical fit-out.
  • Integrate land, utility, interconnection, permitting, design, procurement, construction, commissioning, and network-readiness schedules into a single capacity view.
  • Identify capacity gaps, schedule conflicts, stranded-capacity risks, and dependencies that could prevent infrastructure from becoming operational on time.
  • Develop scenario models comparing self-build, lease, colocation, and strategic development-partner options.
  • Evaluate delivery pathways based on schedule, cost, control, flexibility, reliability, scalability, and execution risk.
  • Recommend campus, building, and utility phasing that preserves optionality while supporting near-term deployment requirements.
  • Assess third-party proposals and determine whether proposed facilities, schedules, technical specifications, and commercial structures can satisfy OpenAI’s requirements.
  • Partner with capacity planning, energy, real estate, site development, design, construction, commissioning, networking, finance, legal, and commercial teams.
  • Establish planning assumptions, readiness criteria, decision gates, and governance for moving opportunities from portfolio planning into execution.
  • Build dashboards and executive-ready materials that communicate capacity supply, demand, timing, assumptions, dependencies, and material risks.
  • Support investment, build-versus-partner, geographic-prioritization, and portfolio-allocation decisions.
  • Create repeatable planning frameworks and playbooks that allow OpenAI to scale shell-capacity decisions across regions and infrastructure generations.

Qualifications

  • 8+ years of experience in data center development, infrastructure planning, capacity planning, real estate development, construction planning, program controls, or a related field.
  • Experience developing or managing portfolio-level plans across multiple data center sites, buildings, or infrastructure programs.
  • Strong understanding of the data center development lifecycle, including site readiness, power delivery, design, permitting, construction, commissioning, and operational turnover.
  • Ability to translate technical and demand requirements into facility-capacity, schedule, and phasing decisions.
  • Strong quantitative and scenario-modeling skills, including the ability to work with incomplete or changing assumptions.
  • Experience evaluating competing delivery strategies and communicating cost, schedule, flexibility, and risk tradeoffs.
  • Strong cross-functional program leadership and the ability to create alignment across technical, commercial, and operational organizations.
  • Excellent written communication and executive-presentation skills.
  • Comfort operating in a fast-moving environment where capacity requirements, technical assumptions, and delivery timelines may change quickly.

Skills

Required:Portfolio planningData center development lifecycle

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
  • 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.
Last updated Sep 24, 2026. Interested? Apply on the company site.

About OpenAI

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