Robotics Intern, Human-Robot Interaction

Toyota Research Institute•Cambridge, MA

3d•$40 - $58•Hybrid

About The Position

Toyota Research Institute is seeking an intern researcher for its Robotics Research division in Cambridge, Massachusetts. The work focuses on understanding how people without robotics expertise expect to collaborate with robots performing real-world tasks, particularly how they communicate preferences through multimodal channels such as visual, auditory, and tactile communication. The intern will plan and conduct a human-robot interaction study, potentially including a longitudinal component to explore how user expectations adapt across repeated interactions with robot behaviors. Findings may be developed into peer-reviewed conference papers or journal articles, and the intern will present the study results to colleagues and the broader TRI organization. The intern will join a collaborative research team working to help people gain independence, access, and mobility. This is a paid, 12-week internship and a hybrid, in-office role. The expected hourly pay range at commencement is $40–$58 for Massachusetts-based roles. Base pay depends on individualized factors including experience, skills, job-related knowledge, and market location. TRI offers medical, dental, and vision insurance, as well as paid time off benefits, including holiday pay and sick time; further details are provided with an offer of employment.

Requirements

Pursuing an MS or PhD in Human-Robot Interaction, Human-Computer Interaction, Human Factors, Robotics, Computer Science, or a related field, or equivalent practical experience.
At least 2 years of experience as an academic Human-Robot Interaction researcher.
Strong software engineering skills; C++ and Python are preferred.
Experience analyzing and debugging autonomous robotic systems.
Experience deploying and/or field-servicing prototype technologies.
Experience conducting user studies involving real robot hardware.
Experience writing peer-reviewed conference papers or journal articles as lead author.
Desire to contribute to the robotics community through publications and open-source code.
Passion for helping humans through robotics and achieving real-world, large-scale impact.

Nice To Haves

Familiarity with original ROS, ROS 2, or similar middleware, and robotic simulators such as Drake, Mujoco, or Bullet.
Experience with behavior cloning and related imitation learning methods.
Experience with interactive machine learning techniques that adapt robot policies based on human feedback or corrections.
Experience with qualitative and quantitative user research, including developing study materials, preparing IRB applications, facilitating and interviewing participants, managing personally identifiable information, and conducting statistical analysis.
Experience with UX design principles and high-fidelity prototyping.
System integration experience on complex, open-ended, and multifunctional projects.

Responsibilities

Plan and execute a human-robot interaction study.
Investigate how members of the general population expect to collaborate with robots performing real-world tasks, including how they communicate preferences through multimodal channels.
Potentially incorporate a longitudinal component to explore how user expectations adapt over multiple interactions with robot behaviors.
Present study findings to colleagues and the larger TRI organization.
Contribute research findings that may lead to peer-reviewed conference papers or journal articles.