SAP iXp Intern - Agentic AI Research PhD Associate

Job Description

Position title: SAP iXp Intern - Agentic AI Research PhD Associate
Location: Palo Alto, CA
Expected start date: January 2027
Contract Duration: 6 months
Work Hours: Full-time, 40 hours per week

What you'll bring

You're a PhD student from year two onward - or a postdoctoral researcher - specialising in agentic AI systems or synthetic data generation.

• Current PhD enrolment (year two or beyond) or postdoctoral experience in AI, Machine Learning, NLP, or a related field
• A strong foundation in agentic AI systems, LLM fine-tuning, reinforcement learning, or synthetic data generation
• A publication record in recognised ML or NLP venues such as ACL, EMNLP, ICLR, ICML, or NeurIPS
• Proficiency in LangGraph or another agentic AI framework, with an understanding of agent evaluation best practices
• A customer-oriented mindset - connecting your research to the real enterprise problems SAP customers face
• Fluency in English is required for this role

We also look for people who communicate clearly, keep the customer in mind, and enjoy finding smart solutions to problems - whatever stage of your career you're at.

In addition to the role-specific skills above, all student and early talent positions at SAP look for candidates who are open to working with AI tools - including agentic AI - to automate everyday tasks, prototype ideas, and build confidence in AI-assisted ways of working from day one.

What you'll build

You'll work with experienced researchers on AI challenges posed by SAP customers, with access to rich real-world enterprise data.

• Conduct research to advance AI agent performance in enterprise environments
• Choose a focus: agentic AI systems and evaluation, LLM fine-tuning and reinforcement learning, or synthetic data generation for enterprise AI
• Publish results and contribute to research that can feed directly into SAP product development
• Collaborate with academic researchers and cross-functional partners on research plans, progress, and findings
• Work with large enterprise data sets to address complex, meaningful problems at scale

Where you belong

You'll join SAP's AI research group - a team tackling real enterprise AI challenges in one of the world's largest software companies. This is a full-time, 6-month internship at SAP Labs, Inc., 3410 Hillview Avenue, Palo Alto, CA 94304. When you join SAP, you'll be a part of SAP Next Gen - a global community of students and early professionals with access to mentors, development programmes, and peers.

Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) Statement

Our company does not discriminate in employment on the basis of race, color, religion, sex (including pregnancy and gender identity), national origin, political affiliation, sexual orientation, marital status, disability, genetic information, age, membership in an employee organization, retaliation, parental status, military service, or other non-merit factor.

Additional Information

About SAP
With a global network of customers, partners, employees, and thought leaders, SAP helps the world run better and improves people's lives.
As a leader in enterprise applications and business AI, SAP stands at the nexus of business and technology. For over 50 years, organizations have trusted SAP to bring out their best by uniting business-critical operations spanning finance, procurement, HR, supply chain, and customer experience.

We win with inclusion
SAP's culture of inclusion, focus on health and well-being, and flexible working models help ensure that everyone - regardless of background - feels included and can run at their best. At SAP, we believe we are made stronger by the unique capabilities and qualities that each person brings to our company, and we invest in our employees to inspire confidence and help everyone realize their full potential. We ultimately believe in unleashing all talent and creating a better world.
SAP is committed to the values of Equal Employment Opportunity and provides accessibility accommodations to applicants with physical and/or mental disabilities. If you are interested in applying for employment with SAP and are in need of accommodation or special assistance to navigate our website or to complete your application, please send an e-mail with your request to Recruiting Operations Team: View email address on click.appcast.io.
For SAP employees: Only permanent roles are eligible for the SAP Employee Referral Program, according to the eligibility rules set in the SAP Referral Policy. Specific conditions may apply for roles in Vocational Training.
Qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to their age, race, religion, national origin, ethnicity, age, gender (including pregnancy, childbirth, et al), sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, protected veteran status, or disability.

Compensation Range Transparency
SAP believes pay transparency is essential to fostering an honest, supportive, and inclusive culture and is an important part of our commitment to pay equity. The salary range for this position is included in the job posting. The actual compensation offered to the successful candidate will fall within that range and will depend on factors such as education, skills, experience, location, and scope of the role, as determined through the selection process. Where applicable, SAP may also provide variable incentive opportunities and additional benefits, subject to the terms of the relevant plans and policies. Any variable incentive amount is target-based, with actual payouts dependent on company and individual performance. Please reference this link for a summary of SAP benefits and eligibility requirements: SAP North America Benefits .

AI Usage in the Recruitment Process
For information on the responsible use of AI in our recruitment process, please refer to our Guidelines for Ethical Usage of AI in the Recruiting Process.
Please note that any violation of these guidelines may result in disqualification from the hiring process.