Technical Program Manager Intern (Fall 2026)

The Role

Zipline’s Program Management team is responsible for ensuring that Zipline achieves our company goals on time and on budget. Our PMs are embedded across our 6 hardware teams and work directly with engineers of many disciplines to design, build, and test our drones and ground infrastructure. Program managers define their team’s priorities and drive execution of key milestones in a constantly changing environment.

What You'll Do

• Understand and mitigate technical and program risks to keep Zipline’s future programs on track. Drive decision making and trade off studies. 
• Define program timelines, milestones and critical path. 
• Manage and support cross-functional teams across electrical and mechanical engineering, design validation, and embedded software domains to build and execute a plan to develop new hardware 
• Drive prototype and test activities to validate next generation hardware designs
• Report program updates to leadership
• Manage new infrastructure builds for our test campaigns and track hardware sample allocations
• Organize and facilitate meetings with cross-functional teams
• Work closely with cross-functional groups to track incoming parts and quality
• Manage upcoming hardware changes to meet company targets

What You'll Bring

• Must have at least completed the second year of your undergraduate studies or equivalent in Mechanical or Mechatronics Engineering. Masters and PhD students are also eligible.
• Strong technical background
• Excellent communication skills and the ability to explain challenges and solutions to fellow engineers and non-engineers alike.
• Enthusiasm for collaborating in a fast paced and highly cross-functional environment
• Ability to pick up technical concepts rapidly
• Ability to drive clarity amidst chaos and ambiguity
• Extreme ownership and a bias for action
• Must be eligible to work in the US
• Demonstrated skill in aligning priorities, coordinating timelines, and leading complex scope, resource, and schedule trades
• Must be able to work in person at Zipline’s South San Francisco office 5 days a week

What Else You Should Know

Our internships are full-time positions, in-person at our South San Francisco or Dallas office. We will host our Fall 2026 interns from September to December.  

Candidates are limited to three (3) applications within a 30-day period.

Zipline is an equal opportunity employer and prohibits discrimination and harassment of any type without regard to race, color, religion, age, sex, national origin, disability status, genetics, protected veteran status, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, or any other characteristic protected by federal, state or local laws or our own sensibilities.

We value diversity at Zipline and welcome applications from those who are traditionally underrepresented in tech. If you like the sound of this position but are not sure if you are the perfect fit, please apply!

Zipline is also committed to providing reasonable accommodations to individuals with disabilities. Please let your point of contact at Zipline know if you require any accommodations throughout your interview process.