System Validation Intern — Automation & HIL Testing

Zipline; South San Francisco (CA); On-site; USD 25,000 - 39,000; Full time

Job summary

Zipline is seeking a System Validation Intern for our South San Francisco office to help validate the Zipline autonomous system. You’ll contribute to hardware-in-the-loop testing, automation pipelines, and flight test support, gaining hands-on experience with modern testing tools.

You will collaborate with engineers across teams, design validation plans, and develop scripts to automate tests. This is a full-time, in-person opportunity for motivated undergraduates in their early years.

Qualifications

• Must have completed the second year of undergraduate studies; Master’s and PhD students are eligible.
• Strong understanding of engineering design fundamentals and the ability to triage and identify root causes of technical issues.
• Experience writing Rust or Python scripts to automate tasks or tests, either through coursework or personal projects.
• Hands-on experience writing Python tests using tools like Pytest or Unittest.
• Familiarity with creating and executing test plans or validation plans for software or hardware systems.
• A hands-on approach to problem-solving, including debugging and triaging technical issues.
• General understanding of electrical systems such as motors, sensors, cameras, and onboard computers.
• Experience working in a Linux environment, including using command-line tools effectively.
• Familiarity with tools like Git for version control, Bazel for build and test management and Jira for task tracking.
• Basic understanding of networking concepts such as RPC or sockets.
• Experience working with CI tools like GitHub Actions, Buildkite, or similar.
• Strong attention to detail and organizational skills to document test results and track issues effectively.

Responsibilities

• Execute Hardware-in-the-Loop tests and flight tests to validate the interaction between Zipline’s Zip, Droid, and Dock systems.
• Collaborate with engineers from different teams to build and refine automated pipelines that test software before it is deployed in flight.
• Design and improve tools that stress-test the system in off-nominal cases.
• Analyze and troubleshoot hardware and software issues uncovered during testing, contributing to system improvements.
• Work alongside a multidisciplinary team to design and execute system-level validation plans.
• Develop and enhance scripts and tools to support automated testing workflows.
• Learn how to ensure reliability and quality in complex, safety-critical systems, gaining valuable insights into real-world engineering challenges.

Skills

Python scripting

Rust scripting

Linux proficiency

Test automation

Debugging

Education

Undergraduate, 2nd year or higher

Tools

pytest

Unittest

Git

Bazel

Jira

Job description

Zipline is seeking a System Validation Intern for our South San Francisco office to help validate the Zipline autonomous system. You’ll contribute to hardware-in-the-loop testing, automation pipelines, and flight test support, gaining hands-on experience with modern testing tools.

You will collaborate with engineers across teams, design validation plans, and develop scripts to automate tests. This is a full-time, in-person opportunity for motivated undergraduates in their early years.