US External Affairs Associate, Global Affairs

Responsibilities

• Build and maintain trusted relationships with civil rights, civil society, research, community, labor, education, accessibility and other stakeholder organizations relevant to OpenAI's U.S. policy priorities.
• Help execute a repeatable engagement operating model grounded in co-design, localized benefits, trusted validators, cross-functional planning, and regular partner reviews.
• Develop stakeholder maps, engagement plans, briefing materials, and follow-up systems for priority policy campaigns and rapid-response moments.
• Support federal and state engagement strategies by identifying credible third-party voices, local proof points, and community feedback that can inform policy positions and advocacy.
• Prepare OpenAI executives and subject-matter experts for external meetings, convenings, roundtables, and public events.
• Translate complex AI product, safety, and policy topics into clear materials for external audiences, including standing content packs and deeper product briefings for technology policy stakeholders.
• Surface external concerns and opportunities related to data and trust, deepfakes, child safety, job displacement, energy costs, copyright, civil and human rights, mental health, and other areas of public concern.
• Coordinate closely with Global Affairs, Communications, Legal, Safety, Product, Research, and other internal teams to ensure stakeholder engagement is accurate, thoughtful, and useful to the business.
• Track relationship health, engagement outcomes, commitments, risks, and follow-ups so the team can operate with accountability and continuity.

Requirements

• Established network and credibility with civil society, civil rights, research, community, and other stakeholder organizations, including groups representing underrepresented communities.
• Deep experience in technology policy, public policy, public affairs, civil society engagement, advocacy, campaigns, or a related field.
• Strong understanding of the federal, state, and local policy institutions, processes, and debates shaping AI governance in the United States.
• Demonstrated ability to design and execute stakeholder engagement strategies tied to concrete policy, partnership, or public trust objectives.
• Excellent communication, presentation, briefing, and interpersonal skills, with the ability to convey complex technical and policy concepts to diverse audiences.
• Strong project management skills, including the ability to manage shared resources, timelines, follow-ups, and cross-functional workstreams.
• Sound judgment, high integrity, and the ability to operate thoughtfully on sensitive or high-salience issues.
• Proven ability to work with cross-functional teams, especially policy, communications, legal, safety, product, research, and technical teams.
• Genuine care for the impact of technology on society and a demonstrated ability to listen carefully to external concerns.

Nice-to-Haves

• Deep familiarity with the civil society, civil rights, and technology policy landscape in the United States.
• Effective coalition builder who can earn trust with a wide range of stakeholders, including groups that may be skeptical of OpenAI or AI more broadly.
• Ability to work in fast-moving, ambiguous environments where strategy, execution, and judgment all matter.
• Comfort moving between external relationship-building and internal cross-functional coordination.
• Strong instincts for where public trust, policy risk, and product reality intersect.
• Energized by the promise of AI while taking seriously its potential harms and uneven impacts.