System Validation & Test Automation Intern

Socket.dev; South San Francisco (CA); On-site; USD 39,000 - 47,000; Full time

Job summary

Zipline is seeking a System Validation Intern to contribute to testing Zipline’s complete system of systems, including Zipline’s Zip, Droid, and Dock. You’ll help build automated testing pipelines and ensure software meets high quality standards before flight, gaining hands-on experience with cutting-edge tools in a collaborative team environment.

You’ll work closely with experienced engineers in a fast-paced, mission-driven setting at our South San Francisco office.

Qualifications

• Completed at least the second year of undergraduate studies; graduate students eligible.
• Strong understanding of engineering design fundamentals and root-cause analysis.
• Experience writing Rust or Python scripts to automate tasks or tests.
• Hands-on Python testing experience with Pytest or Unittest.
• Experience creating and executing test plans for software or hardware systems.
• Familiarity with Linux command-line tools and basic networking concepts (RPC/sockets).
• Experience with Git for version control, and CI tools like GitHub Actions or Buildkite.

Responsibilities

• Execute Hardware-in-the-Loop (HIL) tests and flight tests to validate interactions between Zipline systems.
• Collaborate with engineers to build and refine automated pipelines that test software before deployment.
• Design and improve tools to stress-test the system in off-nominal scenarios.
• Analyze and troubleshoot hardware/software issues uncovered during testing.
• Work with a multidisciplinary team to design and implement system-level validation plans.
• Develop and enhance scripts and tools to support automated testing workflows.
• Learn reliability and safety practices for complex, safety-critical systems.

Skills

Python scripting

Rust scripting

Pytest/Unittest

Linux

Git

bazel

CI tools

Test planning

Electrical systems

Networking basics

Education

Undergraduate (2nd year) student in engineering

Tools

Git

bazel

Jira

GitHub Actions

Buildkite

Job description

Zipline is seeking a System Validation Intern to contribute to testing Zipline’s complete system of systems, including Zipline’s Zip, Droid, and Dock. You’ll help build automated testing pipelines and ensure software meets high quality standards before flight, gaining hands-on experience with cutting-edge tools in a collaborative team environment.

You’ll work closely with experienced engineers in a fast-paced, mission-driven setting at our South San Francisco office.