Application Guide
How to Apply for Security Engineer, Agent Security
at Open AI
🏢 About Open AI
OpenAI is a pioneering AI research and deployment company at the forefront of developing safe and beneficial artificial general intelligence (AGI). Working here means contributing to cutting-edge technologies like ChatGPT and DALL-E while being part of a mission-driven organization focused on ensuring AI benefits all of humanity. The company's unique position as both a research lab and product company offers unparalleled opportunities to work on transformative AI systems with real-world impact.
About This Role
As a Security Engineer on the Agent Security Team, you'll be responsible for designing and implementing security frameworks specifically for OpenAI's agentic AI systems—autonomous AI agents that can perform complex tasks. This role is impactful because you'll be securing the next generation of AI systems that could revolutionize how humans interact with technology, ensuring these powerful agents operate safely and securely at scale.
💡 A Day in the Life
A typical day might involve collaborating with the Agent Infrastructure team to review security designs for new agent capabilities, implementing security controls in Python or Go for containerized agent environments, and analyzing security monitoring data from deployed agentic systems. You'd likely spend time threat modeling new agent features, writing security policies for agent actions, and refining safety pipelines that monitor agent behavior at scale.
🚀 Application Tools
🎯 Who Open AI Is Looking For
- A software engineer with strong Python skills and experience in systems languages like Go or Rust, capable of building security tooling and implementing low-level security controls
- Someone with deep expertise in container security (Docker, Kubernetes) and kernel-level hardening techniques, who understands how to isolate potentially unpredictable AI agents
- A security professional with hands-on experience implementing identity-based network controls and policy enforcement in cloud environments, particularly AWS or Azure
- An engineer familiar with AI/ML security challenges such as model poisoning, adversarial attacks, or securing inference pipelines for autonomous systems
📝 Tips for Applying to Open AI
Highlight specific experience with container security and kernel hardening—mention tools like gVisor, Kata Containers, or seccomp profiles you've implemented
Demonstrate understanding of AI/ML security by discussing relevant projects or research, even if theoretical—OpenAI values candidates who grasp the unique risks of agentic systems
Showcase cloud security experience with AWS or Azure, emphasizing identity-based controls (IAM roles, service principals) rather than just network perimeter security
Tailor your resume to show how you've partnered with infrastructure teams—this role requires tight collaboration with the Agent Infrastructure group
Include examples of threat modeling you've conducted, especially for complex distributed systems or autonomous systems
✉️ What to Emphasize in Your Cover Letter
['Your experience with modern isolation techniques and how they apply to securing autonomous AI agents', 'Specific examples of implementing security controls in cloud environments (AWS/Azure/GCP) for distributed systems', "Your understanding of the unique security challenges posed by agentic AI systems and how you'd approach securing them", 'Demonstrated ability to partner with infrastructure teams to build security into platforms rather than bolting it on afterward']
Generate Cover Letter →🔍 Research Before Applying
To stand out, make sure you've researched:
- → OpenAI's research on agentic systems and their safety approach—read their blog posts and papers on autonomous agents
- → The company's recent product launches involving agent-like capabilities (like ChatGPT plugins or custom GPTs)
- → OpenAI's security blog and any disclosed security research related to AI systems
- → The broader AI safety landscape and how OpenAI positions itself within it
💬 Prepare for These Interview Topics
Based on this role, you may be asked about:
⚠️ Common Mistakes to Avoid
- Focusing only on traditional application security without addressing the unique challenges of AI/ML systems
- Presenting generic cloud security experience without specific examples of identity-based controls or policy enforcement
- Failing to demonstrate understanding of how security requirements differ for autonomous systems versus traditional software
📅 Application Timeline
This position is open until filled. However, we recommend applying as soon as possible as roles at mission-driven organizations tend to fill quickly.
Typical hiring timeline:
Application Review
1-2 weeks
Initial Screening
Phone call or written assessment
Interviews
1-2 rounds, usually virtual
Offer
Congratulations!