Linux Kernels Software Lead

About the Team
The Scaling team builds and optimizes large-scale infrastructure to enable next-generation AI workloads.

About the Role
We’re looking for a founding/lead Linux kernel developer to join our Scaling team. In this role, you’ll design and develop Linux kernel components, working at the intersection of hardware and software to unlock performance at scale.

Responsibilities

- Lead and bootstrap the development of our Linux kernel stack to support high-performance systems.

- Design and implement kernel drivers, including for functionality related to DMA, PCIe, NICs, and RDMA.

- Drive end-to-end development of system-scale networking, including required kernel and other low-level software.

- Collaborate with vendors to integrate their technologies within our systems.

- Bring up and debug the kernel on new platforms.

- Build userspace software to support integration, testing, diagnostics, and performance validation.

Qualifications

- Proven experience leading development within the Linux kernel.

- Deep knowledge of subsystems relevant to high-performance systems: PCIe, dma-buf, RDMA, P2P, SR-IOV, IOMMU, etc.

- Knowledge of subsystems and frameworks related to scale-out networking: ibverbs, ECN/DCQCN, etc.

- Strong programming skills in C, C++, Python, and Linux shell scripting; Rust experience is a strong plus.

- Experience working directly with engineering teams to define interfaces and tooling.

- Track record of managing vendor deliverables and technical relationships.

- Background in embedded systems development (bootloaders, drivers, hardware/software integration).

- Ability to thrive in ambiguity and build systems from scratch.

To comply with U.S. export control laws and regulations, candidates for this role may need to meet certain legal status requirements as provided in those laws and regulations.

About OpenAI

OpenAI is an AI research and deployment company dedicated to ensuring that general-purpose artificial intelli...