AI Innovation Intern (Bachelor & Masters/PHD)
Johnson Controls
AI Innovation Intern
The Johnson Controls AI Innovation Lab (JCAIL) at UIUC Research Park is seeking students to work on production-grade AI systems alongside Johnson Controls engineers. This is a paid, industry-embedded role focused on real-world applications, not classroom projects.
About the Opportunity
Students join focused engineering teams working on AI technologies that support commercial building operations at global scale. Interns contribute to projects that move beyond prototypes and toward production deployment.
What You’ll Work On
- Alarm Intelligence – Transform alarm floods into clear narratives, grouped root causes, and recommended actions.
- Agentic AI Workflows – Build AI systems that orchestrate tools and actions across real operator workflows.
- Knowledge Retrieval – Develop retrieval systems supporting autonomous operations across data centers, healthcare, higher education, and advanced manufacturing.
How We Work
- Focused sub-teams with dedicated engineering mentors.
- Three-week sprint cycles including planning, demos, and retrospectives.
- Working end-to-end demonstrations delivered every sprint.
- Shared platforms, repositories, data, prompts, and evaluation frameworks.
- Opportunities to present work to Johnson Controls senior leadership.
- Projects that advance toward production with Johnson Controls product teams.
Technical Exposure
- AI Foundations: AI/ML fundamentals, large language models, retrieval systems.
- Systems Engineering: Agentic workflows, tool orchestration, knowledge retrieval at scale.
- AI Governance: Evaluation suites, guardrails, citations, traceability, human-in-the-loop approvals, and model-agnostic architectures.
- Programming: Python and C#/.NET.
Who Should Apply
We welcome applications from University of Illinois students pursuing:
- Computer Science
- Computer Engineering
- Electrical Engineering
- Data Science
- Related technical disciplines
Undergraduate, master’s, and PhD students are encouraged to apply.
What Makes a Strong Application
We value hands-on engineering experience. Applicants should be prepared to share projects they have built or shipped, such as:
- GitHub repositories
- Personal or academic projects
- Demo applications
- Production systems used by real users
Position Details
- Openings: Multiple positions available.
- Compensation: Paid position following UIUC Research Park guidelines.
- Hours: Up to 20 hours per week during the academic year and up to 40 hours per week during summer and university breaks.
- Term: One-year appointment with potential renewal.
- Eligibility: Open to students authorized to work in the United States. F-1 students are eligible under UIUC Research Park guidelines.
- Location: 2100 S Oak Street, Suite 110, Champaign, IL 61820.
What Makes This Opportunity Different
- Paid industry experience rather than a class project.
- Access to real industrial telemetry and production environments.
- Mentorship from engineers building and shipping AI systems.
- Exposure to AI governance and evaluation practices used in industry.
- Opportunity to influence products used by real customers.
- Potential pathways into Johnson Controls R&D and future employment opportunities.
About Johnson Controls
Johnson Controls is a global leader in thermal management, mission-critical building systems, energy efficiency, and decarbonization. The company serves industries including data centers, healthcare, pharmaceuticals, advanced manufacturing, and higher education.
- Named one of the World’s Most Ethical Companies by Ethisphere 19 times.
- Helped customers reduce more than $9.5 billion in energy and operating costs.
- Supports global sustainability and emissions reduction initiatives.
How to Apply
Submit your resume and a brief statement of interest to: