Internship - Human-Robot Interaction

merl; Cambridge (MA); On-site; USD 67,000 - 89,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Relocation stipend

Travel to MERL covered

Charlie Card for local commuting

Health insurance after 90 days

Immigration support

Job summary

MERL is seeking a highly motivated intern to conduct research on human-robot interaction. The intern will collaborate with MERL researchers to design and implement novel algorithms, run experiments, and present findings at top conferences. Applicants must be Ph.D.

students with a strong background in robot learning or computer vision. Topics include foundation models, shared autonomy, object handovers, and safety in close proximity.

Qualifications

• Experience in human-robot interaction, robot learning, or vision-language models.
• Experience with ROS2, Python, and PyTorch.
• Current enrollment in a Ph.D. program.

Responsibilities

• Collaborate with MERL researchers to design and implement novel algorithms.
• Conduct experiments and analyze results.
• Disseminate research findings through top-tier conferences.

Skills

Human-robot interaction

Robot learning

Vision-language models

ROS2

Python

PyTorch

Education

Ph.D. student (current enrollment)

Tools

None

Job description

MERL is seeking a highly motivated and qualified intern to conduct research on human-robot interaction. There are several research topics of interest, including foundation models, shared autonomy, object handovers, learning from feedback, and safety in close proximity. Applicants must be Ph.d. students with strong backgrounds in robot learning or computer vision. The selected intern will collaborate closely with MERL researchers to design and implement novel algorithms, conduct experiments, and disseminate research findings through a top-tier conference.

Required Specific Experience

• Demonstrated experience in human-robot interaction, robot learning, or vision-language models
• Experience with ROS2, Python, and deep learning frameworks such as PyTorch
• Current enrollment in a Ph.d. program
• A strong publication record or demonstrated research potential

The pay range for this internship position will be 6-8K per month.

Mitsubishi Electric Research Labs, Inc. "MERL" provides equal employment opportunities (EEO) to all employees and applicants for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age, disability or genetics. In addition to federal law requirements, MERL complies with applicable state and local laws governing nondiscrimination in employment in every location in which the company has facilities. This policy applies to all terms and conditions of employment, including recruiting, hiring, placement, promotion, termination, layoff, recall, transfer, leaves of absence, compensation and training.

MERL expressly prohibits any form of workplace harassment based on race, color, religion, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, national origin, age, genetic information, disability, or veteran status. Improper interference with the ability of MERL’s employees to perform their job duties may result in discipline up to and including discharge.

Working at MERL requires full authorization to work in the U.S and access to technology, software and other information that is subject to governmental access control restrictions, due to export controls. Employment is conditioned on continued full authorization to work in the U.S and the availability of government authorization for the release of these items, which might include without limitation, obtaining an export license or other documentation. MERL may delay commencement of employment, rescind an offer of employment, terminate employment, and/or modify job responsibilities, compensation, benefits, and/or access to MERL facilities and information systems, as MERL deems appropriate, to ensure practical compliance with applicable employment law and government access control restrictions.

• In addition to base pay, interns receive a relocation stipend, covered travel to and from MERL, and a monthly Charlie Card for local commuting.
• Interns are invited to participate in weekly social gatherings and professional development opportunities, including research talks by both internal and external speakers.
• Interns who meet the 90-day waiting period are also eligible for health insurance coverage.
• MERL provides immigration support for qualified candidates as needed.
• Employment is considered “at-will,” and the Company reserves the right to modify base salary or any other compensation program at any time, including for reasons related to individual performance, departmental or Company performance, and market conditions.