What specific AI technologies are core to the AI Applied Scientist PhD Intern role at Zillow?

The AI Applied Scientist PhD Intern role at Zillow focuses on agentic systems, conversational AI, large language models (LLMs), and multi-modal inference. This includes areas like 3D computer vision, human-computer interaction, and user behavior research within AI agent contexts.

What kind of research projects can I expect as a PhD Intern at Zillow?

As a PhD Intern, you will work on advancing customer-facing AI experiences, building agents that handle complex, multi-turn interactions. Projects include personalized home exploration guidance, conversational optimization with context management, and multi-modal collaboration systems integrating 3D vision and LLMs.

Is the AI Applied Scientist PhD Intern role at Zillow remote?

Yes, the AI Applied Scientist PhD Intern role at Zillow is a remote position. This means you can work from a physical location of your choice, with U.S. employees generally able to work from any of the 50 United States, with limited exceptions.

What are the qualifications for the AI Applied Scientist PhD Intern position at Zillow?

To qualify, you must be currently enrolled in a PhD program in computer science, NLP, machine learning, or a related field, with a solid publication record. Backgrounds in agentic AI, conversational AI, multi-modal inference, HCI, or reinforcement learning are highly valued. Familiarity with deep learning frameworks like PyTorch is also required.

Does Zillow consider candidates with non-traditional backgrounds for the AI Applied Scientist PhD Intern role?

Yes, Zillow values experience and perspectives from candidates with non-traditional backgrounds. If you have transferable skills or related experiences, you are encouraged to apply for the AI Applied Scientist PhD Intern position.

What is the application deadline or start date for the AI Applied Scientist PhD Intern role?

The AI Applied Scientist PhD Intern roles are for Summer 2026. Specific application deadlines are not listed, but it's advisable to apply well in advance of the summer internship period.

What is the base pay range for the AI Applied Scientist PhD Intern role at Zillow?

For specific U.S. locations including California, Connecticut, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York, Washington state, and Washington DC, the standard base pay range is $104,000.00 - $166,000.00 annually. Similar ranges apply to Colorado, Hawaii, Illinois, Minnesota, Nevada, Ohio, Rhode Island, and Vermont.

AI Applied Scientist - PhD Intern, Next-Gen Agentic and Multi-Modal Home Exploration Experience

Zillow · United States

Hybrid
Full-time
$166,000 / year
United States

Tailored resume — keyword-matched to this role.

Hiring manager — we find who's hiring.

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Job highlights

Develop next-gen AI agents for home exploration.
Utilize LLMs, conversational AI, and multi-modal inference.
Research human-AI collaboration and user interaction.
Focus on personalized guidance and optimized conversations.
Work on cutting-edge real estate tech.

About the role

About The Team

Are you passionate about creating AI agents capable of reasoning, planning, and collaborating in real-world situations? The Zillow AI Applied Science team is dedicated to developing the next generation of agentic systems, powered by large foundation models, to assist customers in exploring, finding, and dreaming their ideal homes. With millions of users actively seeking the best way to shop for their next home, we are focused on building a cutting-edge online shopping experience. At the convergence of research, engineering, and product, we design AI agents that execute meaningful actions in multi-stakeholder environments. These agents achieve this by comprehending user needs and data, maintaining context, and optimizing for the customer-facing experience.

Some of the questions we are asking in this new paradigm are: How can AI analyze complex user interactions within the UX to determine and suggest the most effective next steps for users? What is the optimal collaborative approach between AI and users to achieve the established objectives?

About The Role

We are seeking remote PhD interns for Summer 2026!

As an intern, you will use your expertise in Agentic systems, conversational AI, LLMs, and multi-modal inference to advance customer-facing experiences and interfaces. Your research will help build AI agents capable of handling complex, rich media oriented, multi-turn interactions while maintaining context and taking appropriate actions. Your internship will develop the next-generation real estate shopping experience that integrates Agentic and Multi-modal reasoning to transform how users find their ideal homes through pushing research problems including but not limited to:

Personalized and Guided Home Exploration: An agentic approach that proactively guides and helps users navigate millions of listings to identify the best homes, the experience should be highly engaging, fun and goal oriented.
Conversational Optimization: Enhanced multi-turn conversations with effective context management and improved dialogue quality, achieved through organized data from retrieved results.
Multi-modal Collaboration System: A combination of 3D computer vision (utilizing 3D reconstructions and Gaussian splats) and LLM interfaces, powered by conversational AI.

This role has been categorized as a Remote position. "Remote" employees do not have a permanent corporate office workplace and, instead, work from a physical location of their choice, which must be identified to the Company. U.S. employees may live in any of the 50 United States, with limited exceptions.

In California, Connecticut, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York, Washington state, and Washington DC the standard base pay range for this role is $104,000.00 - $166,000.00 annually. This base pay range is specific to these locations and may not be applicable to other locations. In Colorado, Hawaii, Illinois, Minnesota, Nevada, Ohio, Rhode Island, and Vermont the standard base pay range for this role is $104,000.00 - $166,000.00 annually. The base pay range is specific to these locations and may not be applicable to other locations.

Who you are

Currently enrolled in a PhD program in computer science, NLP, machine learning, or a related field, with solid publication record.
Background in at least one of the following areas: Human computer interaction (HCI), User behavior research in the context of agentic AI, Agentic AI (tool use, planning, reasoning, decision-making), Conversational AI and dialogue optimization, Multi-modal inference models with focus on combining 3D Computer Vision and LLMs, Multi-agent systems and orchestration, Memory systems and context engineering, Reinforcement learning and reward modeling.
Familiarity with modern deep learning frameworks (e.g., PyTorch, Hugging Face Transformers).
Strong research mindset, with motivation to publish.
Interest in applying AI to complex, multi-stakeholder domains.

Here at Zillow - we value the experience and perspective of candidates with non-traditional backgrounds. We encourage you to apply if you have transferable skills or related experiences.

Get to know us

At Zillow, we’re reimagining how people move—through the real estate market and through their careers. As the most-visited real estate platform in the U.S., we help customers navigate buying, selling, financing and renting with greater ease and confidence. Whether you're working in tech, sales, operations, or design, you’ll be part of a company that's reshaping an industry and helping more people make home a reality.

Zillow is honored to be recognized among the best workplaces in the country. Zillow was named one of FORTUNE 100 Best Companies to Work For® in 2025, and included on the PEOPLE Companies That Care® 2025 list, reflecting our commitment to creating an innovative, inclusive, and engaging culture where employees are empowered to grow.

No matter where you sit in the organization, your work will help drive innovation, support our customers, and move the industry—and your career—forward, together.

Zillow Group is an equal opportunity employer committed to fostering an inclusive, innovative environment with the best employees. We are committed to equal employment opportunity regardless of race, color, ancestry, religion, sex, national origin, sexual orientation, age, citizenship, marital status, disability, gender identity or Veteran status. If you have a disability or special need that requires accommodation, please contact your recruiter directly.

Qualified applicants with arrest or conviction records will be considered for employment in accordance with applicable state and local law.

Los Angeles County applicants: Job duties for this position include: work safely and cooperatively with other employees, supervisors, and staff; adhere to standards of excellence despite stressful conditions; communicate effectively and respectfully with employees, supervisors, and staff to ensure exceptional customer service; and follow all federal, state, and local laws and Company policies. Criminal history may have a direct, adverse, and negative relationship with some of the material job duties of this position. These include the duties and responsibilities listed above, as well as the abilities to adhere to company policies, exercise sound judgment, effectively manage stress and work safely and respectfully with others, exhibit trustworthiness and professionalism, and safeguard business operations and the Company’s reputation. Pursuant to the Los Angeles County Fair Chance Ordinance, we will consider for employment qualified applicants with arrest and conviction records.

Key skills/competency

AI Agents
Agentic Systems
Conversational AI
LLMs
Multi-modal Inference
3D Computer Vision
Research
Machine Learning
HCI
Deep Learning Frameworks

Skills & topics

AI Applied Scientist
PhD Intern
Agentic Systems
Conversational AI
LLM
Multi-modal Inference
Computer Vision
Machine Learning
HCI
Research Scientist
Internship
Zillow
AI
Deep Learning
NLP

How to get hired

Tailor your resume: Highlight PhD research in AI, agentic systems, and multi-modal inference. Emphasize publications and deep learning framework experience.
Showcase your expertise: Clearly articulate your background in HCI, conversational AI, or 3D computer vision within your application.
Prepare for technical deep-dives: Be ready to discuss your research projects, methodologies, and contributions to AI agent development.
Demonstrate research passion: Express your strong research mindset and motivation to publish findings related to Zillow's AI initiatives.

Technical preparation

Master PyTorch and Hugging Face Transformers.,Develop agentic AI planning and reasoning skills.,Practice multi-modal inference with 3D vision.,Build conversational AI dialogue systems.

Behavioral questions

Describe a complex AI research challenge you solved.,How do you approach collaborative AI development?,Share an example of managing context in AI systems.,Discuss your motivation for applying AI to real estate.

Frequently asked questions

What specific AI technologies are core to the AI Applied Scientist PhD Intern role at Zillow?: The AI Applied Scientist PhD Intern role at Zillow focuses on agentic systems, conversational AI, large language models (LLMs), and multi-modal inference. This includes areas like 3D computer vision, human-computer interaction, and user behavior research within AI agent contexts.
What kind of research projects can I expect as a PhD Intern at Zillow?: As a PhD Intern, you will work on advancing customer-facing AI experiences, building agents that handle complex, multi-turn interactions. Projects include personalized home exploration guidance, conversational optimization with context management, and multi-modal collaboration systems integrating 3D vision and LLMs.
Is the AI Applied Scientist PhD Intern role at Zillow remote?: Yes, the AI Applied Scientist PhD Intern role at Zillow is a remote position. This means you can work from a physical location of your choice, with U.S. employees generally able to work from any of the 50 United States, with limited exceptions.
What are the qualifications for the AI Applied Scientist PhD Intern position at Zillow?: To qualify, you must be currently enrolled in a PhD program in computer science, NLP, machine learning, or a related field, with a solid publication record. Backgrounds in agentic AI, conversational AI, multi-modal inference, HCI, or reinforcement learning are highly valued. Familiarity with deep learning frameworks like PyTorch is also required.
Does Zillow consider candidates with non-traditional backgrounds for the AI Applied Scientist PhD Intern role?: Yes, Zillow values experience and perspectives from candidates with non-traditional backgrounds. If you have transferable skills or related experiences, you are encouraged to apply for the AI Applied Scientist PhD Intern position.
What is the application deadline or start date for the AI Applied Scientist PhD Intern role?: The AI Applied Scientist PhD Intern roles are for Summer 2026. Specific application deadlines are not listed, but it's advisable to apply well in advance of the summer internship period.
What is the base pay range for the AI Applied Scientist PhD Intern role at Zillow?: For specific U.S. locations including California, Connecticut, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York, Washington state, and Washington DC, the standard base pay range is $104,000.00 - $166,000.00 annually. Similar ranges apply to Colorado, Hawaii, Illinois, Minnesota, Nevada, Ohio, Rhode Island, and Vermont.

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