Machine Learning Engineer Intern (Summer 2026) at Pulse (S24)
$7K - $12K / monthly
Production-grade unstructured document extraction
San Francisco
Full-time
US citizen/visa only
About Pulse

At Pulse, we're tackling one of the most persistent challenges in data infrastructure - extracting accurate, structured information from complex documents at scale. We've developed a breakthrough approach to document understanding that combines intelligent schema mapping with fine-tuned extraction models where legacy OCR and other parsing tools consistently fail.

We're a small but fast-growing team of engineers based in San Francisco, working on technology that's powering Fortune 100 enterprises, YC startups, public investment firms, and growth-stage companies. We're backed by tier 1 investors and are growing fast.

What makes our tech special is our multi-stage architecture approach to document intelligence:

  • Layout understanding with specialized component detection models
  • Low-latency OCR models for targeted extraction
  • Advanced reading order algorithms for complex document structures
  • Proprietary table structure recognition and parsing
  • Fine-tuned vision-language models for charts, tables, and figures

If you're passionate about solving complex challenges at the intersection of computer vision, NLP, and data infrastructure, you'll find that at Pulse, your work directly impacts customers and shapes the future of document intelligence.

What Are We Looking For?

  • 5 days in-office at our San Francisco office
  • Eager to learn and adapt quickly
  • Prior startup or founding experience is a plus

Compensation

  • Competitive base salary plus equity
  • Performance-based bonuses
  • Relocation assistance for Bay Area moves
  • Daily meal stipends
  • Comprehensive medical, vision, and dental coverage
About the role

Overview

Pulse is tackling one of the most persistent challenges in data infrastructure: extracting accurate, structured information from complex documents at scale. Our breakthrough architecture combines schema mapping with fine-tuned extraction models where legacy OCR and parsing consistently fail.

We’re a small, fast-growing team in San Francisco powering Fortune 100 enterprises, YC startups, public investment firms, and growth-stage companies. We’re backed by tier-1 investors and scaling quickly.

About the Internship

As a Machine Learning Engineer Intern, you’ll work directly with our founding engineers on core ML challenges at the intersection of computer vision, NLP, and data infrastructure. This internship is designed for second- or third-year undergraduate students eager to gain hands-on experience in production-scale AI systems.

Responsibilities

  • Train and fine-tune OCR, layout, table, and vision-language models

  • Contribute to evaluation, data curation, and active learning pipelines

  • Optimize inference, batching, and quantization on GPU

  • Collaborate with engineers to productionize models with reliability in mind

  • Document findings that inform the model roadmap

Requirements

  • Currently an undergraduate student in Computer Science, Engineering, or a related field

  • Strong experience with Python and PyTorch or JAX

  • Familiarity with modern vision or multimodal architectures

  • Solid programming skills and interest in production systems

Nice to Have

  • Experience with distributed training or model optimization (Triton, TensorRT, ONNX)

  • Open source contributions in ML/NLP/CV

Compensation

  • $40–$70 per hour (depending on experience)

  • Daily meal stipend, office perks, and close mentorship from the founding team

Technology

Python, JavaScript/TypeScript (Next.js + React), with C++ experience a plus

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