Fall 2026
Research Intern
NeoCognition
11-50 employees
Self-learning AI agents with domain expertise
No salary listed
Palo Alto, CA, USA
Hybrid
Hybrid schedule in Palo Alto.
Bachelor's, Master's, PhD
 AI & Machine Learning (1) |
|---|
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- Currently pursuing or recently completed a PhD, Master's, or advanced undergraduate degree in machine learning, computer science, or a related field.
- Have a strong foundation in machine learning and natural language processing, with demonstrated interest in large language models or agentic artificial intelligence systems.
- Proficiency in Python and familiarity with modern machine learning frameworks such as PyTorch, JAX, or TensorFlow.
- Ability to design, implement, and analyze research experiments independently and collaboratively.
- Have strong written and verbal communication skills.
- Explore novel research directions in large language model reasoning, planning, tool use, multi-agent systems, or evaluation methodologies.
- Design and execute exploratory experiments to test new hypotheses and advance agentic systems.
- Build research prototypes that demonstrate new capabilities or insights, even when they are not immediately production-ready.
- Collaborate with the research team to document findings, analyze results, and iterate on ideas.
- Work toward publishing research outcomes in top-tier artificial intelligence venues such as NeurIPS, ICLR, ICML, or ACL, or contribute to open-source efforts.
- Participate in team discussions, paper readings, and brainstorming sessions to shape the research roadmap.
- Prior research experience or publications in artificial intelligence, natural language processing, or related areas.
- Experience with open-weight models, fine-tuning, or reinforcement learning.
- Familiarity with agent frameworks, tool-use systems, or evaluation benchmarks.
- Interest in long-term research bets and comfort with ambiguity and exploration.
NeoCognition builds self-learning AI agents that become specialized experts within defined domains, such as professions, organizations, or software systems. The agents continuously learn from their operating environments to form internal world models and adapt their behavior without full re-training. They aim to develop deep domain understanding and context-aware judgment, enabling expert-level performance in micro-worlds. The product strategy centers on delivering AI agents and augmented workflows for business and professional workflows, along with AI governance and organizational reorganization services. The company’s approach differentiates itself from reactive task-execution agents by emphasizing cumulative learning, specialization, and the creation of agents that learn on the job to improve productivity and generate novel solutions within specific domains.
Company Size
11-50
Company Stage
Seed
Total Funding
$40M
Headquarters
Palo Alto, California
Founded
2026
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Simplify's Take
What believers are saying
- The April 21, 2026 $40 million seed from Cambium and Walden funds long runway.
- Intel CEO Lip-Bu Tan and Databricks co-founder Ion Stoica signal elite credibility.
- Specialized AI agents fit buyer demand for cheaper, safer, domain-specific automation.
What critics are saying
- NeoCognition launched April 21, 2026 without public customers, revenue, or product benchmarks.
- Enterprise buyers still prefer deterministic tools; failures in 2026 pilots block Series A.
- OpenAI, Anthropic, and Google can copy the research, collapsing differentiation and pricing.
What makes NeoCognition unique
- Yu Su, Xiang Deng, and Yu Gu built agent research used by OpenAI, Anthropic, and Google.
- NeoCognition sells self-learning agents that accumulate domain knowledge inside specific micro-worlds.
- Its world-model approach targets specialized judgment, not generic task execution.
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Growth & Insights and Company News
6 month growth
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↑ 0%NeoCognition, an AI agent laboratory focused on specialised intelligence, has raised $40 million in seed funding, according to filings with the US Securities and Exchange Commission. Founded by AI researchers Yu Su, Xiang Deng and Yu Gu, the Palo Alto-based company develops AI agents that continuously learn to achieve expert-level intelligence. The startup's mission is to expand access to expertise through these specialised systems. The filing was made under Regulation D of the Securities Act of 1933, which allows companies to sell securities without standard registration requirements. No additional details about investors or valuation were disclosed in the SEC filing.
US AI startup NeoCognition exits stealth with $40m seed. NeoCognition, an AI startup spun out of work by Ohio State professor Yu Su, has emerged from stealth with a US$40 million seed round led by Cambium Capital and Walden Catalyst Ventures. Vista Equity Partners also joined the round, with angels including Intel CEO Lip-Bu Tan and Databricks co-founder Ion Stoica. Su founded the company in 2025 to build self-learning AI agents for enterprises, saying current agents complete tasks as intended only about half the time. Food for thought. Implications, context, and why it matters. NeoCognition's 'expert' agents aim to learn jobs like humans do. * NeoCognition says its agents keep learning how a company works, including processes, limits, and routines, to build a specialized "world model of work" for each setting 1. * The company says this focus can make them quicker and more dependable than general-purpose models. It also says the approach can cut costs and improve safety in high-stakes business use 1. * NeoCognition ties its case to the founders' work on Mind2Web, MMMU, and SeeAct, which cover AI benchmarks and agent studies. It also says work from Su's team is used in frontier large language models from OpenAI, Anthropic, and Google 1. Investors are also backing smaller, task-specific AI approaches. * NeoCognition's funding fits a wider move toward smaller AI models built for one job, which investors believe can beat general-purpose systems in some tasks 2. * Fastino says it trains small models for specific tasks on low-end gaming graphics processing units (GPUs). Yoodli, a communication coaching startup, reached a valuation above US$300 million after a US$40 million series B round by focusing its AI on communication training 23. * The shift suggests companies buying AI care more about dependable performance and lower costs when a system is built for one purpose 2. Stay updated on the go with our mobile app. Get latest insights with smoother, more personalized experience through TIA mobile app. How would you feel if you could no longer use Tech in Asia? Share, tag us, and land on our Wall of!
NeoCognition emerged from stealth with a $40M seed round co-led by Cambium Capital and Walden Catalyst Ventures, with participation from Vista Equity Partners and angels including Intel CEO Lip-Bu Tan and Databricks co-founder Ion Stoica.