AI Foundations - Software Engineer - Research Internship : 2026

Introduction

IBM Research takes responsibility for technology and its role in society. Working in IBM Research means you'll join a team who invent what's next in computing, always choosing the big, urgent and mind-bending work that endures and shapes generations. Our passion for discovery, and excitement for defining the future of tech, is what builds our strong culture around solving problems for clients and seeing the real world impact that you can make.

IBM's product and technology landscape includes Research, Software, and Infrastructure. Entering this domain positions you at the heart of IBM, where growth and innovation thrive.

Your role and responsibilities

Join the pioneering AI Foundations Research team at IBM Research and contribute to shaping the future foundations of artificial intelligence. Our group of scientists, engineers, and designers is dedicated to conducting end-to-end research that delivers real-world AI impact through a rigorous, responsible, and open innovation framework. We are the team behind IBM's Granite open-source models, and our work spans multi-modal (vision, speech, language, code) and multi-lingual systems, data quality, data generation, novel model architectures, training recipes, governance and trustworthiness, and programming models for interacting with models. As an intern, you will explore cutting-edge research areas, including new algorithms for training, fine-tuning, and inference time scaling, alongside pioneering work in generative computing and generative programming for language, code, and other modalities, all within a collaborative environment that bridges fundamental science and transformative engineering.

As an AI Software Engineer Intern, you will engage in the full research lifecycle to pioneer new advancements in artificial intelligence. Your role will involve identifying core challenges, designing novel prototype solutions, and validating them through rigorous experimentation. You will develop the robust, scalable infrastructure that powers cutting-edge AI research. Collaborating in small, expert-led teams, you will drive projects from concept to completion - transforming novel algorithms into high-performance, reusable code within modern, distributed frameworks, while contributing to IBM's open innovation initiatives.

Required technical and professional expertise

Foundational ML Knowledge : Familiarity with core concepts of modern AI, including Transformer architectures and Large Language Models (LLMs). Hands-on class or project experience is a plus.

Programming Proficiency : Experience with Python for software development, scripting, or prototyping.

Problem-Solving : Strong analytical and quantitative skills with an ability to break down complex problems.

Communication : Ability to clearly explain technical concepts and work collaboratively within a team.

Learning Mindset : A strong interest in AI research and a commitment to building high-quality, well-tested code.

Preferred technical and professional experience

Technical Proficiency : Expertise in ML frameworks (PyTorch) and full-cycle development of algorithms and systems.

Specialized Skills : Hands-on experience with generative AI (LLMs) and multimodal models.

Communication : Ability to present complex research and build high-impact technical demonstrations.

IBM is committed to creating a diverse environment and is proud to be an equal-opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, gender, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, national origin, caste, genetics, pregnancy, disability, neurodivergence, age, veteran status, or other characteristics. IBM is also committed to compliance with all fair employment practices regarding citizenship and immigration status.