About the role#
The Rendering and Animation team builds the graphics engine for all Figma applications. This team creates the technology that underpins our user experience, focusing on performance, reliability, and maintainability. As a PhD intern, you will join this team to own a high-impact project that aligns your technical research with our current graphics and media challenges. You will work alongside team leads and partners to deliver results over a 12 or 16-week period.
What you'll do#
- Participate as an embedded member of the Rendering and Animation team while learning from industry graphics engineers.
- Collaborate with PMs, designers, researchers, and other engineers to scope and execute your work.
- Develop, validate, and document solutions that move from prototypes to production-ready systems.
- Apply research insights to solve product challenges.
- Contribute to domain areas such as shaders, anti-aliasing algorithms, media processing, and animation.
What you'll need#
- Current enrollment as a 4th or 5th year senior PhD student in Computer Graphics, Media Processing, or a related field.
- Experience with OpenGL, WebGL, WebGPU, Vulkan, or Metal, including their respective shader languages like GLSL or WGSL.
- Proficiency in C++ or Rust.
- A track record of rigorous problem-solving through academic or applied research, with an ability to think about low-level technology and use cases.
- Expertise in computer graphics, ideally supported by publications at conferences such as SIGGRAPH, Eurographics, High Performance Graphics, NVIDIA GTC, or Pacific Graphics.
- Familiarity with WebAssembly, 2D graphics, performance optimization, animation, geometry, or media is a plus.
- Interest in art and design applications, experience with AI coding tools, and previous industry experience are also valued.
- Strong communication and interpersonal skills to support cross-functional collaboration.
Location & details#
- This is a full-time, paid internship for Summer 2027.
- The role is based on-site in either San Francisco, California, or New York, New York.
- Sponsorship is not available for this position.
About Figma
Figma operates in the design services industry. It provides a platform for collaborative design work. The company started in 2012 and maintains its headquarters in San Francisco, California. It employs between 1,001 and 5,000 people. The organization remains privately held.
How to get in at Figma
Applying early gives you a distinct advantage at Figma because recruiters review applications before the pile grows. Intern Insider sends an instant alert the moment a role matching your target is published anywhere, so you can be among the first to submit your materials. This timing often determines whether your resume gets a second look or remains in the queue. You can reach out to recruiters directly to ask about the role or a referral, which materially improves your response rates. Intern Insider surfaces the specific recruiters behind Figma roles so you can make that connection. Using these direct channels helps you stand out in a competitive process.
