Scaling · Datacenter Design
About the Team
OpenAI is building the world’s most advanced AI infrastructure ecosystem. The Site Readiness & Development team owns the upstream diligence and development work required to convert powered-land opportunities into executable infrastructure options.
About the Role
The Site Selection Lead sets the site-selection strategy for powered-land and greenfield/brownfield opportunities. This role defines, with cross-functional partners, what makes a site attractive, executable, and scalable, then turns that shared rubric into portfolio choices and deployment plans.
Key Responsibilities
- Own the site-selection strategy across priority geographies, including market maps, pipeline segmentation, source refreshes, live-location tracking, and portfolio prioritization.
- Convene Power, Land, Development, Engineering, Construction, Environmental, Community, Commercial, Legal, and Finance partners to define the shared rubric for a high-quality site.
- Translate that rubric into clear screening criteria across power readiness, land control, timing, scale, cost, community risk, environmental constraints, AHJ path, budget, schedule, and counterparty credibility.
- Orchestrate Commercial, Legal, Finance, Power, and Development teams to shape exclusivity, initial terms, site-control strategy, funding assumptions, and the path to deployment before deeper commitment.
- Build a deployment plan for top candidates that identifies capacity, sequencing, capital implications, critical-path approvals, risks, owners, and stage-gate decisions.
- Lead conceptual site planning and