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# PhD Intern, Software Engineer - Interaction Design (2027)

- **Company:** Alopex Interaction Design LLC
- **Location:** New York, NY, United States
- **Experience:** Internship
- **Salary:** $153,920
- **Contract:** Internship / Graduate position
- **Skills:** Computer Animation, Artificial Intelligence, Software Code Optimization, Software Debugging, Video Game Development, Human-Computer Interaction, Interaction Design, Machine Learning, Screen Reader, GitHub Copilot, Information Technology, Figma, Claude, GPT, Programming Languages
- **Published:** November 7, 2026
- **Apply:** https://www.dice.com/job-detail/ef5bc65a-1510-4820-b9d9-25dfc8e3be69

## About the Role

* Current enrollment as a 4th or 5th year senior PhD student pursuing a PhD in Computer Science, Human-Computer Interaction, Artificial Intelligence, Machine Learning, or a related field
 * Demonstrated ability to translate complex research concepts into practical, scalable solutions
 * A track record of rigorous problem-solving through academic or applied research
 * Proficiency in at least one general purpose coding language

While it's not required, it's an added plus if you also have:

 * A creative portfolio of work consisting of time-based media, animation, game development, digital illustration, or another creative field.
 * Strong communication and interpersonal skills, with demonstrated experience collaborating across functions
 * Experience using AI-assisted development tools (e.g., GitHub Copilot, ChatGPT, Claude) to write, debug, and optimize code
 * Applied engineering skills via industry experience, prior internships or similar experience
 * First-author publications in top academic conferences related to our team's focus areas

## Description

As a PhD intern, you'll combine HCI research with hands-on-engineering to help define the next generation of interactive experience design tooling. You'll work closely with a mentor and teammates and get to learn, contribute, and grow in a supportive environment, while applying your research background to drive real-world impact., This 12 or 16-week internship for Summer 2027 will be based out of our San Francisco or New York hub.
What you'll do at Figma:

 * Be fully embedded onto a Figma team working on problems that intersect with your research area
 * Drive projects that apply research insights to meaningful product challenges
 * Collaborate with engineers, PMs, designers, and researchers to scope and execute your work
 * Develop, validate, and document solutions from prototypes to production-ready systems
 * Share your expertise through presentations, design reviews, and cross-functional collaboration
 * Deliver a project with real impact by the end of your internship, * Holding interviews in an accessible location
 * Enabling closed captioning on video conferencing
 * Ensuring all written communication be compatible with screen readers
 * Changing the mode or format of interviews

To ensure the integrity of our hiring process and facilitate a more personal connection, we require all candidates keep their cameras on during video interviews. Additionally, if hired you will be required to attend in person onboarding.