Research Intern - AI Coding Agents

Overview

Research Internships at Microsoft provide a dynamic environment for research careers with a network of world-class research labs led by globally-recognized scientists and engineers, who pursue innovation in a range of scientific and technical disciplines to help solve complex challenges in diverse fields, including computing, healthcare, economics, and the environment.

We are a team of experienced research scientists in Microsoft Research. Our mission is to design novel techniques to improve the efficiency, reliability and scalability of next-generation AI systems. We build working systems, engage with academia, publish scientific papers, publish software for the research community, and deploy cutting-edge technologies to our businesses & customers.

Are you excited by problems such as:

• evaluating the correctness of AI generated code
• understanding how customers use agentic AI coding systems
• reducing the cost of using AI systems
• understanding the impact of system decisions such as KV cache sizing on the cost & performance of coding agents

If you are, then we want to work with you!

Our team has deployed research to a multitude of Microsoft businesses, including Microsoft AI Foundry, GitHub, Azure, Office and Windows. We have also published our research at the top AI & systems academic conferences including EMNLP, NeurIPS, USENIX Security, USENIX NSDI, SOSP, ACM SIGCOMM, ACM MobiSys, ACM MobiCom.

As part of a small, tight-knit team, your work will be central to our focus and attention throughout the summer and beyond. Find out more about the team at: https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/research/group/software-hardware-co-design-sharc/ . We practice open communication and respectful dialogue. We support multiple social and career building opportunities in our internship program.

We seek Research Intern candidates with proficient technical skills and backgrounds in systems and AI. Experience with agentic coding, caching, distributed systems, and/or operating systems is a plus. A candidate should have experience working on large-scale systems in addition to being fluent in the relevant state-of-the-art research. A candidate should be a team player in a collaborative and supportive environment with outstanding programming skills. The work will require excelling in fast-paced execution and implementation on our AI harnesses and systems. Applicants should demonstrate depth of knowledge and demonstrate experience in experimentation, implementation, and evaluation.

Responsibilities

Research Interns put inquiry and theory into practice. Alongside fellow doctoral candidates and some of the world’s best researchers, Research Interns learn, collaborate, and network for life. Research Interns not only advance their own careers, but they also contribute to exciting research and development strides. During the 12-week internship, Research Interns are paired with mentors and expected to collaborate with other Research Interns and researchers, present findings, and contribute to the vibrant life of the community. Research internships are available in all areas of research, and are offered year-round, though they typically begin in the summer.

Additional Responsibilities

• Develop AI and/or systems solutions that extend the state of the art in coding agents
• Characterize and profile KV cache behavior under real coding workloads
• Implement and evaluate prototypes using small-scale testbeds and large-scale production environments
• Collaborate closely with team members on developing systems from prototyping to production level
• Work closely with AI engineering teams to drive scalable solutions
• Evaluate internship artifacts to support the publication of research papers

Qualifications

Required Qualifications

• Currently enrolled in a Doctorate Degree program in Computer Science or a relevant field.

Other Requirements

• Research Interns are expected to be physically located in their manager’s Microsoft worksite location for the duration of their internship.
• In addition to the qualifications below, you’ll need to submit a minimum of two reference letters for this position as well as a cover letter and any relevant work or research samples. After you submit your application, a request for letters may be sent to your list of references on your behalf. Note that reference letters cannot be requested until after you have submitted your application, and furthermore, that they might not be automatically requested for all candidates. You may wish to alert your letter writers in advance, so they will be ready to submit your letter. 

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience building research or engineering systems in AI or distributed systems
• Experience in at least one of the following areas:
  • AI coding agents or tool-use frameworks
  • KV caching
  • Large Language Model (LLM) inference, distributed systems, or AI workload optimization
  • experience with experimental methodology, performance profiling, and analyzing complex software interactions

• Familiarity with relevant state-of-the-art research, demonstrated through research projects, publications, or prior industry experience

The base pay range for this internship is USD $6,810 - $13,480 per month. There is a different range applicable to specific work locations, within the San Francisco Bay area and New York City metropolitan area, and the base pay range for this role in those locations is USD $8,920 - $14,610 per month.

Certain roles may be eligible for benefits and other compensation. Find additional benefits and pay information here:  https://careers.microsoft.com/us/en/us-intern-pay

Microsoft accepts applications and processes offers for these roles on an ongoing basis throughout the academic calendar (September - April).

This position will be open for a minimum of 5 days, with applications accepted on an ongoing basis until the position is filled.

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Microsoft is an equal opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to age, ancestry, citizenship, color, family or medical care leave, gender identity or expression, genetic information, immigration status, marital status, medical condition, national origin, physical or mental disability, political affiliation, protected veteran or military status, race, ethnicity, religion, sex (including pregnancy), sexual orientation, or any other characteristic protected by applicable local laws, regulations and ordinances. If you need assistance with religious accommodations and/or a reasonable accommodation due to a disability during the application process, read more about requesting accommodations.