Graduate Intern, Innovation - Applied Research and Technology (Fall 2026)

How you'll help us Keep Climbing (overview & key responsibilities)

As a business unit, Delta Innovation maintains a portfolio of research projects driven by fundamental research, new product innovation, business impact and operational goals. From creating experiments and prototyping implementations to designing new interactive experiences, our research team works on real-world problems that span the breadth of the airline industry including airport operations, customer & employee experience, and commercial applications (e.g., sales, marketing, and digital channels).

As an Applied Research Intern , you'll explore current (and uncover new) business challenges and provide actionable insights to project teams with the overall goal of developing new and improved products, processes, and technologies for Delta's customers and employees. You will accomplish this goal by leveraging your strong desire and ability to solve complex problems. Technology enablement will be a key driver and grounding of your research. You will explore emerging technology applications such as AI, ML, robotics, IoT, AR/VR, and many more. As an Applied Research Intern , you'll also actively contribute knowledge to the wider Delta community by sharing your learnings and findings with various internal business units and stakeholders.

Role & Responsibilities

• Conduct primary research activities, including working with stakeholders to determine exact business needs and translate into research objectives

• Design and conduct research and evaluation projects ranging in size and complexity across multiple, business units - often working independently, but with guidance from leadership and senior research team members

• Collaborate and work closely with the engineering and design teams for fast insights transfer to solve challenging business problems and make important product decisions

• Prepare and deliver research findings in formats including reports, briefs, presentations, logic models, theories of change, data visualizations, data dashboards, audience and user profiles and personas, and audience and user journey maps

What you need to succeed (minimum qualifications)

• Graduate student with interest and understanding of emerging technologies including (but not limited to) AI, ML, robotics, IoT, AR/VR

• Must be actively enrolled in a post-graduate accredited program

• Ability to identify, understand and incorporate complex technical and business challenges into research opportunities

• Familiarity with various research & evaluation methodologies

• Ability to think creatively about how to obtain data, analyze and contextualize it, and persuasively present data stories and solutions to an audience

• Ability to translate mass amounts of data into digestible and meaningful insights and be able to think critically about how to best deliver on business objectives

• Excellent organizational skills, attention to detail, self-reliance, and strong work ethic

• Strong presentation skills

• Consistently prioritizes safety and security of self, others, and personal data.

• Embraces diverse people, thinking, and styles.

• Possesses a high school diploma, GED, or high school equivalency.

• Is at least 18 years of age and has authorization to work in the United States.

What will give you a competitive edge (preferred qualifications)

Experience in a technology research-focused role (e.g., academic, tech-scouting, etc.)

Benefits and Perks to Help You Keep Climbing

Delta Air Lines, Inc. is an Equal Employment Opportunity / Affirmative Action employer and provides reasonable accommodation in its application process for qualified individuals with disabilities and disabled veterans. If you are a qualified individual, you may request a reasonable accommodation if you are unable or limited in your ability to access job openings through this site, apply for jobs through Delta's online system, or at any point in the selection process. To request a reasonable accommodation, please click here