Part Time Student Worker – Performance Optimization & Agentic Systems

Zoox • San Diego, WA

22h • Onsite

About The Position

About Zoox Zoox is transforming mobility with fully autonomous, electric vehicles designed from the ground up for a driverless future. Our mission is to make transportation safer, more sustainable, and accessible to everyone. At Zoox, innovation, collaboration, and a bold vision for the future drive everything we do. About Our Part Time Student Worker Program Zoox’s program offers hands-on experience with cutting-edge technology, mentorship from some of the industry’s brightest minds, and the opportunity to make meaningful contributions to real projects. We seek part time student workers who demonstrate strong academic performance, engagement beyond the classroom, intellectual curiosity, and a genuine interest in Zoox’s mission. Project Overview Zoox is seeking a highly detail-oriented and methodical student contractor to join our platform architecture team. The primary focus of this role is to design and execute rigorous performance optimization experiments for software processes running on high-performance CPU/GPU platforms (NVIDIA). In this role, you will: Ensure that experiments are reproducible, profiling data is meticulously captured, and edge cases are thoroughly investigated Thrive on precision You will work at the intersection of traditional hardware-aware optimization and cutting-edge agentic systems, using tools like Claude to develop LLM-based agents that can assist in the optimization lifecycle About Zoox Zoox is developing the first ground-up, fully autonomous vehicle fleet and the supporting ecosystem required to bring this technology to market. Sitting at the intersection of robotics, machine learning, and design, Zoox aims to provide the next generation of mobility-as-a-service in urban environments. We’re looking for top talent that shares our passion and wants to be part of a fast-moving and highly execution-oriented team. Follow us on LinkedIn Accommodations If you need an accommodation to participate in the application or interview process please reach out to [email protected] or your assigned recruiter. A Final Note: We may use artificial intelligence (AI) tools to support parts of the hiring process, such as reviewing applications, analyzing resumes, or assessing responses. These tools assist our recruitment team but do not replace human judgment. Final hiring decisions are ultimately made by humans. If you would like more information about how your data is processed, please contact us.

Requirements

• Strong Mathematical Foundation: Demonstrated proficiency in Linear Algebra, Control Theory, or Stochastic Optimization to model autonomy and performance bottlenecks
• Hardware-Aware Optimization: A deep academic or project-based understanding of computer architecture (NVIDIA platforms) to optimize for memory bandwidth and high-throughput TFLOPS
• Agentic Systems & Analysis: Experience experimenting with LLM-based agents and a disciplined approach to systems profiling and software engineering
• Operational Style: You must be exceptionally detail-oriented and careful in your execution, prioritizing accuracy and deep-dive analysis over speed
• Currently pursuing a B.S. or M.S., in a relevant engineering field
• Available for a 6 month project
• Able to commit to at least 20 hours per week
• Ability to commute on-site to one of our offices
• Student Worker may not use proprietary Zoox information in university theses, publications, or share it outside

Responsibilities

• Ensure that experiments are reproducible
• Profiling data is meticulously captured
• Edge cases are thoroughly investigated
• Thrive on precision
• Work at the intersection of traditional hardware-aware optimization and cutting-edge agentic systems
• Using tools like Claude to develop LLM-based agents that can assist in the optimization lifecycle

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Part-time
• Career Level: Intern
• Number of Employees: 501-1,000 employees