Research Intern

Research Internships at Microsoft

Research Internships at Microsoft offer a dynamic setting for research careers. Interns work alongside world-class research labs led by globally recognized scientists and engineers, who pursue innovation across scientific and technical fields that address complex challenges in computing, healthcare, economics, and the environment.

Our team is made up of experienced research scientists in Microsoft Research. We design new techniques to improve the efficiency, reliability and scalability of next-generation AI systems. We build working systems, engage with academia, publish papers and software for the research community, and bring cutting-edge technologies to Microsoft businesses and customers.

We are interested in 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 how system decisions, such as KV cache sizing, affect the cost and performance of coding agents

If these interest you, we would like to work with you.

Our research has been deployed across Microsoft businesses, including Microsoft AI Foundry, GitHub, Azure, Office and Windows. We have also published at leading AI and systems conferences, including EMNLP, NeurIPS, USENIX Security, USENIX NSDI, SOSP, ACM SIGCOMM, ACM MobiSys and ACM MobiCom.

As part of a small, close-knit team, your work will be central to our focus throughout the summer and beyond. We practice open communication and respectful dialogue, and our internship program includes social and career-building opportunities.

We are looking for Research Intern candidates with strong technical skills and a background in systems and AI. Experience with agentic coding, caching, distributed systems and/or operating systems is a plus. Candidates should have worked on large-scale systems, know the relevant state-of-the-art research well, and have outstanding programming skills. The role requires fast-paced execution and implementation on our AI harnesses and systems, along with depth of knowledge in experimentation, implementation and evaluation.

Responsibilities

Research Interns put inquiry and theory into practice alongside doctoral candidates and some of the world's best researchers. During the 12-week internship, interns are paired with mentors, collaborate with other interns and researchers, present findings, and take part in the community. Research internships are available in all areas of research and are offered year-round, though they typically begin in the summer.

• 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 on small-scale testbeds and large-scale production environments
• Collaborate closely with team members to take systems from prototype to production
• Work closely with AI engineering teams to drive scalable solutions
• Evaluate internship artifacts to support the publication of research papers

Research Interns are expected to be physically located at their manager's Microsoft worksite for the duration of the internship, and the role follows a 3 days per week in-office schedule.