Perception Software Engineering Intern Summer 2024

About Zipline

Zipline is on a mission to transform the way goods move. Our aim is to solve the world’s most urgent and complex access challenges by building the first instant logistics system that serves all humans equally. Leveraging expertise in robotics and autonomy, Zipline designs, builds, and operates a fleet of cutting edge, autonomous delivery drones. We serve tens of millions of people around the world.

Joining Zipline’s Emerging Talent program as an intern is an opportunity to contribute to our promise of building a system that provides equitable access to critical healthcare supplies for millions of people. We believe that internships are more than just opportunities to learn by watching or doing low level tasks. We expect our interns to take on meaningful work that actively contributes to moving Zipline’s mission forward, while learning real-world skills that will serve them in their careers for the long term. 

Join us, and build the future of logistics with the best humans around!

About the Perception Team

In service of our mission to operate at global scale, we’re growing our perception capabilities, to expand quickly and safely into new products and locations, with the ultimate goal of delivering essential packages right to your doorstep. Our team is made up of engineers who are passionate about developing and shipping perception systems for the real world. This work spans the fields of classical and modern computer vision, machine learning, deep learning, localization/navigation, data analysis, sensor fusion, and more!

The Role

You will work in a fast-paced, collaborative environment to improve our perception capabilities. Your contributions will directly advance our production system development. Starting on day one, you will have the opportunity to work side-by-side with our perception experts to learn about and contribute to our complex perception stack.

What You'll Do  

Some possible projects you may work on include:

• Investigating and developing computer vision algorithms and ML models that run in real-time on constrained compute platforms
• Building deep learning models for computer vision tasks 
• Harvesting data for self-supervised algorithm development
• Evaluating the performance of perception algorithms
• Contributing to building object detection and tracking systems 
• Implementing sensor fusion/observation filtering algorithms

What You'll Bring 

• Must have at least completed the second year of your undergraduate studies or equivalent. Masters and PhD students are also eligible
• Solid foundation in any of the following: classical and modern computer vision, machine learning, deep learning, localization/navigation, data analysis, or sensor fusion
• Experience developing solutions using test-driven methods  
• Excitement for contributing to production software
• Strong software engineering skills, with proficiency in relevant languages like Python, C++, or Rust
• Excellent communication skills and ability to work across diverse teams with varying focuses

What Else You Need to Know   

Our internships are full-time positions, in-person at our South San Francisco office. We will host our Summer interns from May to September. 

The starting cash range for this role is $38 - 42 / hour. Please note that this is a target, starting cash range for a candidate who meets the minimum qualifications for this role. The final cash pay for this role will depend on a variety of factors, including a specific candidate's experience, qualifications, skills, and working location. The total compensation package for this role may also include: overtime pay; commuter benefits; paid sick time; and more.

Zipline is an equal opportunity employer and prohibits discrimination and harassment of any type without regard to race, color, religion, age, sex, national origin, disability status, genetics, protected veteran status, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, or any other characteristic protected by federal, state or local laws or our own sensibilities.

We value diversity at Zipline and welcome applications from those who are traditionally underrepresented in tech. If you like the sound of this position but are not sure if you are the perfect fit, please apply!

Zipline is also committed to providing reasonable accommodations to individuals with disabilities. Please let your point of contact at Zipline know if you require any accommodations throughout your interview process.