Students
Degree Programs
Courses
China Internship Initiative
1. For Student Interns
2. For Prospective Employers
3. Internship Positions and Application
4. Other U-M Student Internship Funding
Graduate Certificate
Teaching Certification in Chinese

Internship Positions and Application

Students
Degree Programs
Courses
China Internship Initiative
1. For Student Interns
2. For Prospective Employers
3. Internship Positions and Application
4. Other U-M Student Internship Funding
Graduate Certificate
Teaching Certification in Chinese

All travel must follow current guidelines, which are detailed in the International Institute Travel Policy.

Application Deadline: January 31, 2027

For each position you are applying, submit your application materials to china.internships@umich.edu, with the following information:

The position you are applying for
Your updated resume
A one page, tailored cover letter explaining why you are interested in working for this organization, and how this internship fits in with your overall career goals

Company Name: C12.ai (合碳智能)

View their website

Location: Shanghai, P.R.C.

Organization Description

Founded in 2022, C12.ai (合碳智能) is an AI for Science company building the “Physical AI Scientist”—a system that combines AI agents for experimental design and workflow planning with embodied robots that carry out tasks in real laboratories. Our mission is to make good science happen faster. By automating complex, repetitive laboratory work, we give scientists more time for judgment, creativity, and discovery.

Our technology has demonstrated continuous autonomous operation in the R&D laboratory of a leading global biopharmaceutical company. We have also established a research collaboration with Danaher to develop autonomous laboratory capabilities for bioprocess development, as we expand into new scientific applications.

C12.ai is led by founder and CEO Dr. Jerry Chen, who holds a Ph.D. in computer science from the University of Michigan. He previously served as chief digital officer at WuXi AppTec, founded Tencent’s Medical Big Data Lab, and was chief architect at Alibaba Health. Our multidisciplinary team brings together expertise in AI, robotics, biomedicine, and data science, connecting advances in technology with practical challenges in experimental research.

Language Requirements: Mandarin is preferred for daily teamwork and is especially helpful for on-site debugging and mechanical-design collaboration. Professional working proficiency is recommended, but strong technical candidates who can collaborate effectively in English may be considered case by case.

Other allowance: Candidates might receive meal and transportation allowance.

Job Categories: Technology & Engineering

Positions Available: 5

Preferred dates of internship: Ideally, the internship will be from late May or early June through August 2027. Exact start and end dates are flexible based on the candidates’ availability.

Position Descriptions:

General requirements: Undergraduate or graduate study in robotics, automation, mechanical engineering, computer science, artificial intelligence, software engineering or a related field; strong learning ability, ownership, communication and teamwork.

Other Benefits：

Participate in internal training and learning opportunities to improve professional skills.
Work with industry experts and excellent teams to accumulate valuable work experience.
Have the opportunity to become a regular employee.

Robot Debugging Intern

Primary Responsibilities:

Support deployment, programming, debugging and validation of laboratory automation systems, including robotic arms, mobile robots and AGVs; prepare test plans and reports; analyze hardware and software issues; and recommend product improvements.

Desired professional skills/specialties:

Python/C++, robot fundamentals, coordinate transformations, sensors and control systems; OpenCV/Halcon, PLCs or industrial communication protocols are a plus.

Mechanical Design Intern

Primary Responsibilities:

Support the design, drafting and optimization of mechanical components and structures for laboratory automation solutions; assist with assembly and commissioning; and prepare design documents, technical reports and bills of materials.

Desired professional skills/specialties:

CAD/SolidWorks, mechanical principles, component selection, manufacturing processes and hands-on prototyping or assembly experience.

AI Agent Development Intern

Primary Responsibilities:

Develop backend services for laboratory-robot agent systems; build task orchestration, asynchronous scheduling and multi-device coordination modules; evaluate and adapt agent runtimes; and review AI-generated code for safety, maintainability and reliability.

Desired professional skills/specialties:

Python backend development, concurrency and asynchronous programming, software design patterns, agent runtimes and system architecture; ROS/ROS2, OPC UA, Modbus, message queues or open-source contributions are a plus.

Robotics Algorithm Intern

Primary Responsibilities:

Work on robot kinematics and dynamics modeling, simulation, system identification and motion-control algorithms; improve human-robot collaboration and adaptive control; and help validate algorithms in realistic laboratory workflows.

Desired professional skills/specialties:

Strong foundations in control theory, kinematics and dynamics; familiarity with PID, model predictive control, reinforcement learning, simulation and algorithm implementation. Graduate-level study is preferred.

Computer Vision Algorithm Intern

Primary Responsibilities:

Develop computer-vision algorithms for object detection, image segmentation, visual recognition, image enhancement and vision-language or multimodal models; process and augment image data; train, evaluate and optimize models; reproduce and adapt SAM, U-Net and Transformer-based methods; and support inference optimization, API packaging, deployment testing and project delivery.

Desired professional skills/specialties:

Undergraduate or graduate study in computer science, artificial intelligence, mathematics, statistics, automation or a related field; Python and at least one deep-learning framework such as PyTorch, TensorFlow or JAX; foundations in machine learning and deep learning; familiarity with CNNs, Transformers, ViT, diffusion models, OpenCV and NumPy. Experience with SAM, U-Net, YOLO, Mask R-CNN, Stable Diffusion, multimodal models, reinforcement learning or ONNX/TensorRT/OpenVINO is a plus.

Company Name: Shanghai Jiao Tong University Global College (SJTU Global College)

View their website

Location: Shanghai, P.R.C.

Organization Description

The Global College (GC) of Shanghai Jiao Tong University (SJTU), one of China’s leading universities, is an engineering school offering a fully English-taught curriculum and internationally oriented educational experiences. GC serves as a hub for international students to study in China, engage with Chinese culture, and gain valuable cross-cultural learning experiences.

Language Requirements: No

Other allowance: Not provided

Job Categories: Administration & Management; Communication & Marketing

Positions Available: 1

Preferred dates of internship: May 7 – August 15, 2027

Position Description:

International Programs Facilitator

This internship offers a unique professional development opportunity for a highly motivated candidate interested in international education. The intern will support international students participating in GC’s summer programs by providing guidance and assistance, fostering a supportive living and learning environment, addressing health and safety concerns, and facilitating reflection on intercultural learning and group dynamics. The intern will also assist with international study opportunities for GC students.

Based in GC’s International Programs Office, the intern will work closely with the office team and overseas partner institutions, particularly the University of Michigan, to support international program coordination, student services, and cross-cultural exchange.

Preferred Qualifications:

This individual is preferred to have prior experience living, working, studying, or traveling in a different cultural setting.
Demonstrated interest and commitment to intercultural learning and student development is required, as is the ability to manage ambiguity, creatively solve problems and work with a high degree of independence.
Candidates must display maturity, sensitivity to student privacy and wellness, and respect for diverse perspectives.
Experience working with international students or in a culturally diverse service setting, or previous travel to China and/or knowledge of Chinese is a plus, but not required.

Search: {{$root.lsaSearchQuery.q}}, Page {{$root.page}}

for

Search: {{$root.lsaSearchQuery.q}}, Page {{$root.page}}

Internship Positions and Application

Application Deadline: January 31, 2027

Company Name: C12.ai (合碳智能)

Positions Available: 5

Position Descriptions:

Robot Debugging Intern

Primary Responsibilities:

Desired professional skills/specialties:

Mechanical Design Intern

Primary Responsibilities:

Desired professional skills/specialties:

AI Agent Development Intern

Primary Responsibilities:

Desired professional skills/specialties:

Robotics Algorithm Intern

Primary Responsibilities:

Desired professional skills/specialties:

Computer Vision Algorithm Intern

Primary Responsibilities:

Desired professional skills/specialties:

Company Name: Shanghai Jiao Tong University Global College (SJTU Global College)

Positions Available: 1

International Programs Facilitator