Applied Scientist Intern, Summer 2027

Job overview

The Applied Scientist Intern role is hybrid in San Francisco, CA, with in-office work three days per week on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays. The expected base pay range is $64–$68 per hour. Lyft’s purpose is to serve and connect, and the Rider Science team works on rider-focused product research. The intern develops and evaluates large language model-based rider agents as behavioral proxies, testing whether simulations can provide useful signals before online experiments. The work combines agent-based modeling, machine learning, and causal inference to support product iteration and experimentation.

What you'll do

• Develop LLM-based rider agents representing varied rider contexts and behaviors
• build simulation environments for product experiences and interventions
• evaluate simulated behavior against human data, theory, and historical experiments
• analyze simulated population behavior
• conduct experiments and ablation studies
• apply the framework to rider product questions
• communicate findings and recommendations to science, engineering, and product partners.

What we're looking for

Skills & competencies

applied scientist intern

summer 2027

rider science

large language models

agent-based modeling

machine learning

causal inference

behavioral simulation

hybrid

san francisco ca

lyft

$64–$68/hour

phd candidate

medical dental vision

Work arrangement

• Weekend coverage required

Benefits & perks

• Medical, dental, and vision insurance
• mental health benefits
• two days of paid time off and three days of sick time for interns
• 401(k)
• subsidized commuter benefits
• Lyft Pink access.

Why this role

Applicants must be pursuing a PhD in a relevant technical field and have a graduation date between December 2027 and Summer 2028. The hybrid schedule requires office attendance three days weekly on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays.

About the employer

Lyft is hiring for this role. Industry: Taxi and Ridesharing Services. Sector: 48.