Operations Engineer (Physical Infrastructure)

ABOUT xAI xAI’s mission is to create AI systems that can accurately understand the universe and aid humanity in its pursuit of knowledge. Our team is small, highly motivated, and focused on engineering excellence. This organization is for individuals who appreciate challenging themselves and thrive on curiosity. We operate with a flat organizational structure. All employees are expected to be hands-on and to contribute directly to the company’s mission. Leadership is given to those who show initiative and consistently deliver excellence. Work ethic and strong prioritization skills are important. All employees are expected to have strong communication skills. They should be able to concisely and accurately share knowledge with their teammates. ABOUT THE ROLE: As a member of the xAI infrastructure team, you will apply your knowledge, experience, and creativity to help design, build, and activate some of the world’s most technically advanced data centers and AI compute facilities. The Construction and Infrastructure team builds the machine that makes the machine—in this case, the hyperscale facilities that power the world’s most advanced AI systems. Process flow, equipment integration, project planning, and detailed department-level metrics and dashboards all fall under the scope of this role. If you like strategic planning, juggling many different priorities, improving processes, and spending your time in a dynamic, fast-paced work environment, then this team may be for you! This role will report directly to the department head and serve as a key resource org-wide. RESPONSIBILITIES: Develop internal visual standards for internal work boards, JIRA queuing, PowerBI dashboards, and department workflow Support department continuous improvement projects such as new process rollouts/standardization Integrate with all levels of the business to understand current workflows and identify systematic gaps Define and develop department-level metrics & associated dashboards that quantify the health of our operations and influence change Conduct in-depth analyses through SQL queries and other data analysis methods to dive into problems and identify trends for decision making, following the rules of clear visual indicators and linear flow Create reports, tools, and standardized metrics for operational measurements and improvements Develop automation that mitigates business risk or creates efficiencies within xAI’s data center facilities Conduct department-wide operations audits that streamline the repair, maintenance, and construction engineering teams Maintenance program enhancement – increase attention on poor-health hardware and descope unnecessary work Implement construction management or maintenance tools (software or hardware) to reduce wasted effort by engineers and techs Site services analysis to ensure smart spending on contracts such as custodial, utilities, waste, power, cooling, and fiber, etc., and roadmap improvements Build communication tools and reports targeted at facility and site directors to improve communication and facilitate customer service Standardize material library and procurement process to reduce project lead times Drive alignment with maintenance and construction teams at other xAI sites across the country to reduce duplicated work BASIC QUALIFICATIONS: Bachelor’s degree in an engineering discipline 2+ years of experience in operations/process improvement (internship experience qualifies) Experience with Excel, SQL, or Python PREFERRED SKILLS AND EXPERIENCE: Previous experience working in a data center, hyperscale infrastructure, manufacturing, supply chain, or production environment Proficiency with statistics, data analysis, data visualization, and cost benefit analysis Experience with CAD software, ArcGIS, Archibus, Power BI, JIRA, or similar tools Familiarity with inventory, production, capacity planning, and critical infrastructure systems (including MEP, BMS/SCADA, or ERP systems) Experience with lean, six s