AI Research Intern

AI Research Intern

Location: New York, NY

Department: Engineering

AI Research Intern

Navan is the all-in-one travel and expense management platform that is transforming the way businesses manage their corporate travel and expenses. Leveraging AI-driven automation, real time data, and an intuitive user experience, Navan simplifies business travel and finance operations for companies worldwide. 

We're launching a new effort in Agentic AI, an initiative designed to accelerate the development of Agentic AI research and foster research talent. Over the course of six months, interns will be part of an engineering and research team with Navan and academia mentors that aims to explore the spectrum of architectures of Agentic AI systems. 

About Navan Cognition

Navan is revolutionizing corporate travel and expense management with AI-driven automation and real-time data solutions. Our proprietary Navan Cognition system has transformed AI-powered dialogue agents, achieving performance levels competitive with top AI innovators. To sustain and expand these advancements, we are building a research-driven team that will pioneer LLM-based cognitive architectures and integrate cutting-edge AI research into our products.

Internship Overview

As an AI PhD Intern, you will contribute to the advancement of LLM-based dialogue agents by developing formal mathematical frameworks, benchmarking performance, and optimizing AI architectures. You will collaborate closely with engineers and researchers to bridge theory and real-world application, ensuring that Navan Cognition remains at the forefront of AI innovation. A three-month full-time commitment is expected. Interns who have other obligations, such as coursework and research who are seeking part-time commitment will be considered

What You’ll Do

• Research and develop Generative AI models to enhance Navan Cognition’s AI capabilities
• Conduct benchmarking and comparative analysis of dialogue agent performance relative to state-of-the-art AI solutions
• Apply formal mathematical frameworks to describe, analyze, and optimize LLM-based architectures
• Design and implement experiments to evaluate AI models' effectiveness, scalability, and efficiency
• Work closely with cross-functional teams to integrate AI solutions into Navan’s existing platforms
• Stay current with advancements in AI, NLP, and machine learning, incorporating new techniques where applicable
• Contribute to internal research reports and publish findings in leading AI conferences and journals

What We’re Looking For

• PhD candidate in Computer Science, Machine Learning, AI, or a related field
• Strong background in machine learning, AI algorithms, and natural language processing (NLP)
• Experience with commercial LLMs (e.g., OpenAI, Anthropic) and/or open-source models (e.g., Llama, DeepSeek)
• Proficiency in JavaScript (Python experience is a plus)
• Familiarity with structured and unstructured datasets, API integration, and data management
• Knowledge of testing frameworks, experiment design, and model evaluation
• Passion for AI research and staying ahead of industry advancements
• Strong problem-solving skills, analytical thinking, and ability to collaborate with cross-functional teams

Why Join Us?

• Work on cutting-edge LLM-based AI research with direct real-world applications
• Collaborate with world-class engineers and researchers in a fast-paced, innovation-driven environment
• Gain hands-on experience in applying AI research to enterprise solutions
• Potential to publish research findings and contribute to the AI community