2027 Spring Intern - Data Science & Machine Learning

Location: South San Francisco

2027 Spring Intern - Data Science & Machine Learning

Department Summary

At Genentech, we are leveraging cutting-edge Artificial Intelligence to transform medical information delivery, commercial and clinical workflows, and patient impact. We are seeking a highly motivated Spring Intern – Agentic AI Discovery & Prototyping to join our Data Science & Machine Learning team.

In this role, you will work at the intersection of Generative AI, software prototyping, and system evaluation. You will research, rapidly prototype, and benchmark next-generation Agentic AI systems, ranging from specialized question-answering agents to multi-agent evaluation frameworks used across Generative AI initiatives. Because our work ultimately serves patients and healthcare professionals, a core pillar of your efforts will involve ensuring our agentic systems are safe, reliable, compliant, and aligned with rigorous healthcare standards.

This position is based in South San Francisco, CA, On-Site.

The Opportunity

Build, test, and refine functional prototypes for AI agent workflows tailored for interactive question-answering, search, and workflow automation.

Design and implement a general-purpose evaluation framework to benchmark LLM outputs, agent reliability, tool calling, and reasoning accuracy across projects.

Explore and implement guardrails to ensure AI agent outputs are safe, hallucination-resistant, compliant with regulatory standards, and aligned with strict patient safety and privacy guidelines.

Develop clean, maintainable Python code to integrate LLMs with internal APIs, search tools, and structured data sources.

Collaborate cross-functionally with engineers, data scientists, and domain stakeholders to gather requirements, iterate on feedback, and showcase prototype capabilities.

Share your project findings, system architectures, and evaluation metrics to the broader team at the end of your internship.

Program Highlights

Intensive 12-weeks, full-time (40 hours per week) paid internship with possibility to extend to 6 months or a year.

Program start dates are in January (Spring).

A stipend, based on location, will be provided to help alleviate costs associated with the internship.

Ownership of challenging and impactful business-critical projects.

Work with some of the most talented people in the biotechnology industry.

Who You Are (Requirements)

Required Education

Must be pursuing a Master's Degree (enrolled student).

Must be pursuing a PhD (enrolled student).

Required majors: Computer Science, Data Science, AI/ML, Biomedical Informatics, or a related quantitative field.

Required Skills

Currently enrolled in a graduate degree program (e.g., Computer Science, Data Science, AI/ML, Biomedical Informatics, or a related quantitative field).

Foundational proficiency in Python and standard software development best practices (version control/Git, writing modular code).

Understanding of Large Language Models (LLMs) and core Generative AI patterns (e.g., prompt engineering, agentic workflows, or Retrieval-Augmented Generation).

Awareness of AI safety principles, output reliability, and the importance of compliance in high-stakes environments like biotechnology and healthcare.

Preferred Knowledge, Skills, and Qualifications

Excellent communication, collaboration, and interpersonal skills.

Complements our culture and the standards that guide our daily behavior & decisions: Integrity, Courage, and Passion.

Academic projects or coursework involving LLM API integration or open-source AI frameworks (e.g., LangChain, LlamaIndex, or building with commercial/open-source APIs).

Experience or strong interest in system evaluation, benchmarking, or testing (e.g., setting up test cases, evaluating model accuracy/consistency, or unit testing agent steps).

Strong analytical problem-solving skills, curiosity, and an eagerness to experiment in a fast-paced environment.

Relocation benefits are not available for this job posting.

The expected salary range for this position based on the primary location of California is $52/hour.  Actual pay will be determined based on experience, qualifications, geographic location, and other job-related factors permitted by law. This position also qualifies for paid holiday time off benefits.

Genentech is an equal opportunity employer. It is our policy and practice to employ, promote, and otherwise treat any and all employees and applicants on the basis of merit, qualifications, and competence. The company's policy prohibits unlawful discrimination, including but not limited to, discrimination on the basis of Protected Veteran status, individuals with disabilities status, and consistent with all federal, state, or local laws.

If you have a disability and need an accommodation in relation to the online application process, please contact us by completing this form Accommodations for Applicants.