Description
Shield AI is a venture-backed defense-tech company with the mission of protecting service members and civilians with intelligent systems.
Its products include Hivemind autonomy software, V-BAT and X-BAT aircraft, and Aechelon simulation and synthetic reality technologies.
The Summer Internship program is a 10-week paid internship that provides hands-on mentorship, an opportunity to add real contribution to the company via an internship project, and a possible job offer at the end.
About the Role
Shield AI's Software Development Engineer Intern program spans engineers who design, build, and test the code that powers autonomous systems , from user-facing applications and embedded flight software to machine learning models and the underlying systems platforms that tie it all together.
Over 10–12 weeks, interns work alongside full-time engineers to analyze requirements, write and debug production-quality code, and ship a real feature or capability using standard Agile development practices.
Example Intern Projects:
- Applications: Build a new feature or internal tool (web, mobile, or desktop) that streamlines a mission-planning or fleet-management workflow.
- Firmware/Embedded: Develop and debug embedded C/C++ code for a flight controller or sensor module, including bring-up and hardware-in-the-loop testing.
- Machine Learning: Train, evaluate, and integrate a perception or decision-making model (e.g., object detection, sensor fusion) into an autonomy pipeline.
- Systems Development: Extend a platform tool, API, or data pipeline that supports autonomy software, simulation, or cloud infrastructure.
Required Qualifications
- Currently pursuing a Bachelor's or Master's degree in Computer Science, Computer Engineering, Electrical Engineering, or a related technical field
- Proficiency in at least one modern programming language (e.g., C, C++, Python, Java, or JavaScript)
- Solid foundation in data structures, algorithms, and software design principles
- Experience writing, testing, and debugging code, whether through coursework, personal projects, or prior internships
- Familiarity with version control (e.g., Git) and collaborative development workflows
- Strong analytical and problem-solving skills, with the ability to break down ambiguous requirements into working code
- Effective written and verbal communication skills and the ability to work collaboratively in a team environment
Preferred Qualifications
- Exposure to mobile or web application frameworks and full-stack development
- Hands-on experience with embedded systems, microcontrollers, real-time operating systems, or assembly-level debugging
- Coursework or projects involving machine learning, statistics, probability theory, or deep learning frameworks (e.g., PyTorch, TensorFlow)
- Experience with cloud platforms, databases, networking, or distributed systems
- Familiarity with Agile/Scrum development methodologies
- Prior internship, research, or club/competition experience in robotics, autonomy, or aerospace applications
- Interest in or exposure to the defense, aerospace, or autonomous systems industry