Hardware Lab Manager (AI)

TL;DR

Hardware Lab Manager (AI Infrastructure): Managing and scaling physical hardware labs to support AI research with an accent on server deployment, power distribution, and hardware instrumentation. Focus on bringing up new accelerator platforms, optimizing lab layout, and building automation playbooks for remote teams.

Location: Based in San Francisco office; requires frequent on-site presence and travel to nearby lab spaces.

Salary: $320,000 - $405,000 USD

Company

Anthropic is a public benefit corporation dedicated to creating reliable, interpretable, and steerable AI systems that are safe and beneficial for society.

What you will do

• Manage physical lab operations across sites, including rack-and-stack, cabling, and power/cooling planning.
• Provision new server and accelerator platforms from crate to SSH-ready state, including firmware, BIOS/UEFI, and OS installation.
• Lead hardware procurement, inventory management, and end-to-end RMA processes with vendors.
• Develop custom debug and programming harnesses (JTAG/SWD/UART) and remote power solutions for engineers.
• Supervise on-site contractors and vendors, including electricians and cabling crews.
• Create technical playbooks and lightweight tooling to enable remote teams to utilize lab resources independently.

Requirements

• Hands-on experience managing hardware or datacenter labs, including power distribution and fiber/copper cabling.
• Working knowledge of server management planes (BMC/IPMI/Redfish, BIOS/UEFI, PXE boot).
• Proficiency in Linux and basic networking (VLANs, DHCP, DNS) to prepare bare-metal machines.
• Experience managing vendors, quotes, and freight for physical equipment.
• Must be based in San Francisco, CA.

Nice to have

• Experience designing and standing up a datacenter or lab from scratch.
• Work with high-density GPU/TPU racks and liquid cooling systems.
• Electronics bench skills such as soldering, rework, and use of multimeters or oscilloscopes.
• Experience with DCIM or asset-management tools like NetBox or ServiceNow.

Culture & Benefits

• Competitive compensation and optional equity donation matching.
• Generous vacation and parental leave.
• Flexible working hours.
• Collaborative, research-driven environment in a high-impact AI organization.