OpenAI

Associate General Counsel, Commercial - Infrastructure

OpenAI • $180K — $220K *
Legal & Accounting
11 - 15 years of experience
Job Overview by Ladders

Qualifications

  • 12+ years of legal experience focused on technology transactions
  • JD and qualification to practice in California
  • A blend of in-house and top-tier law firm experience
  • Expertise in negotiating infrastructure agreements
  • Familiarity with global supply chains and manufacturing transactions
  • Strong autonomy and sound judgment in fast-paced environments
  • Exceptional communication skills for translating complexity into business guidance

Responsibilities

  • Own commercial legal strategy for infrastructure transactions
  • Draft and negotiate complex agreements with suppliers and partners
  • Support strategic partnerships in AI infrastructure
  • Develop procurement and licensing frameworks for the infrastructure ecosystem
  • Align contract terms with finance and compliance requirements
  • Collaborate on policy issues affecting supply chains and manufacturing
  • Create efficient contracting processes for rapid infrastructure development

Benefits

  • Hybrid work model with 3 days in-office per week
  • Relocation assistance for new employees
Full Job Description
About the Role

We're seeking a senior commercial infrastructure lawyer to lead legal work across our rapidly growing data center development and colocation portfolio. You will advise on complex, high-value transactions involving new data center sites, power, construction, colocation, and related infrastructure arrangements.

This role is designed for a lawyer who understands how data centers are developed and operated-not a general real estate practitioner. You will work closely with infrastructure, finance, procurement, and operations teams, while coordinating outside counsel where appropriate, to help projects move quickly and responsibly.

San Francisco is preferred, and occasional travel may be required.

In this role, you will:
  • Lead commercial legal strategy and risk management for data center development and colocation transactions.
  • Draft, negotiate, and advise on colocation agreements, construction agreements, power-related arrangements, and other contracts supporting data center development.
  • Support first-party projects involving raw land, site and power rights, design and construction, EPC models, third-party build-to-suit structures, and leasebacks.
  • Partner cross-functionally with infrastructure, finance, procurement, operations, and other stakeholders on fast-moving, complex projects.
  • Manage and collaborate effectively with outside counsel across a high volume of infrastructure matters.
  • Develop scalable legal playbooks and contracting approaches for a growing portfolio of data center sites.


You might thrive in this role if you have:
  • 12+ years of legal experience, primarily in commercial legal roles.
  • Deep, hands-on experience drafting, negotiating, and advising on colocation and data center agreements.
  • Experience with one or more of the following: first-party data center builds, construction and EPC agreements, power arrangements, raw-land development, build-to-suit projects, or leasebacks.
  • A track record leading sophisticated, high-value commercial infrastructure transactions.
  • Experience at a hyperscaler, cloud or compute provider, data center developer, major colocation company, or law firm practice focused on comparable commercial infrastructure matters.
  • A mix of in-house and top-tier law firm experience.
  • Excellent judgment and the ability to operate autonomously in a highly technical, fast-paced environment.
  • Strong communication skills and an ability to translate complex legal issues into practical, business-aligned guidance.
  • A JD and license or qualification to practice in California.


About OpenAI

OpenAI is an artificial intelligence research laboratory consisting of the for-profit corporation OpenAI LP and its parent company, the non-profit OpenAI Inc. The company was founded in 2015 by a group of technology leaders, including Elon Musk, Sam Altman, Greg Brockman, Ilya Sutskever, and John Schulman. OpenAI's mission is to develop and promote friendly AI for the betterment of humanity. The company has developed a number of cutting-edge AI technologies, including GPT-3, a language processing system that can generate human-like text. OpenAI has received funding from a number of high-profile investors, including LinkedIn co-founder Reid Hoffman and venture capitalist Peter Thiel.
Learn more about OpenAI
Size
100 employees
Industry
Founded
2015

Similar Jobs

More Jobs at OpenAI

More Legal & Accounting Jobs

Find similar Associate General Counsel, Commercial - Infrastructure jobs: