OpenAI
Academic Research Partnerships & Programs Lead
San Francisco · Contract
Sponsorship not specifiedDetected 7 days ago
Business DevelopmentProcurementResearchCommunication
About the role
- This is a hybrid business development and program management role.
- Run discovery with researchers and university stakeholders to understand workflows, data and security needs, procurement constraints, and success criteria.
- Translate research workflows into effective use of Pro, Codex, API, and ChatGPT Edu in partnership with Solutions, Product, and Education account teams.
Responsibilities
- Build a pipeline of funded labs, research centers, and technical champions at priority R1 universities; qualify opportunities based on workflow value, funding path, influence, and expansion potential.
- Design and operate phased access and fellows programs, including eligibility, selection, offer mechanics, onboarding, office hours, community programming, and pilot goals.
- Manage pilots end to end, remove trust, funding, and technical blockers, and drive measurable activation, retention, and expansion.
- Build clear handoffs and expansion paths from researcher to lab to institution; track fellow selection, activation, retained usage, workflow proof, conversion, and expansion.
- Strong program design and operating judgment, with the ability to move from an ambiguous concept to a measurable, repeatable motion.
Requirements
- Ability to navigate complex institutions across researchers, central and research IT, procurement, funders, administrators, and executive sponsors.
Nice to have
- Phd and experience within funded lab research.
- Hands-on experience with AI platforms, developer products, or research infrastructure.
Benefits
- Relevant experience in business development, program management, partnerships, or technical go-to-market work serving higher education, research, developer, or technical communities.
Company info
- We are building a higher education researcher motion that helps funded labs adopt OpenAI across core research workflows.
- OpenAI is an AI research and deployment company dedicated to ensuring that general-purpose artificial intelligence benefits all of humanity.
This listing is sourced directly from OpenAI's careers page and normalized into a canonical job model.