Lab Intern
Company Description
Backed by leading climate and American dynamism investors, Terranova builds intelligent robotic systems to terraform the Earth itself — lifting land, restoring wetlands, and protecting critical infrastructure from floods and sea-level rise.
Our mission is to preserve the built environment, create new habitats, and usher in an era of abundance. Our work supports climate resilience, disaster recovery, and defense across the United States and beyond.
We're assembling a world-class team that wants to work on something real, physical, and civilization-scale. If you want your work to reshape the world — literally — this is the place to do it.
What to Expect
We're seeking a lab intern to support our engineering team in testing, validating, and iterating on the robotic systems that power Terranova's work. You'll spend your time hands-on in the lab — running experiments, maintaining test rigs, collecting and logging data, and helping turn engineering designs into working hardware. It's a chance to see how a physical product gets built and proven out, from bench test to field-ready system.
Key Responsibilities
Set up, run, and monitor lab experiments and hardware tests in support of the engineering team
Maintain, calibrate, and troubleshoot lab equipment, test rigs, and sensor instrumentation
Collect, organize, and log test data, and help summarize results for engineers
Assist with prototyping, assembly, and basic fabrication of hardware components
Support integration and validation testing as systems move from bench to field
Document lab procedures, test setups, and findings for the team
Follow lab safety protocols and help keep the workspace organized and running smoothly
Requirements
Comfortable with the pace and intensity of early-stage startup life
Working towards a bachelor's degree or higher in Chemical Engineering, Chemistry, Biology, Biomedical Engineering, or a related field
Comfortable in a lab environment
U.S. permanent residency required
Preferred Skills and Experience
Hands-on wet lab experience
Experience with environmental or materials testing — soil, sediment, water quality, corrosion, or durability
Familiarity with lab instrumentation (pH meters, spectrophotometers, GC/HPLC, microscopy)
Basic data analysis skills (Excel, Python, or MATLAB) for processing experimental data
Background in materials science, polymers, or composites a plus
Coursework or project experience in environmental, geotechnical, or fluid systems a bonus
Strong lab safety practices and attention to detail
Comfortable with fieldwork or sample collection outside the lab
Compensation and Timeline
$25–35/hr, plus relocation and company perks
Fall internship, September through December, with flexibility around your school schedule
Skills Required
- Working toward a bachelor's degree or higher in Chemical Engineering, Chemistry, Biology, Biomedical Engineering, or a related field
- Comfortable working in a laboratory environment
- U.S. permanent residency
- Comfortable with the pace and intensity of early-stage startup life
- Hands-on wet lab experience
- Experience with environmental or materials testing, including soil, sediment, water quality, corrosion, or durability
- Familiarity with laboratory instrumentation such as pH meters, spectrophotometers, GC/HPLC, and microscopy
- Basic data analysis skills using Excel, Python, or MATLAB
- Background in materials science, polymers, or composites
- Coursework or project experience in environmental, geotechnical, or fluid systems
- Strong laboratory safety practices and attention to detail
- Comfortable with fieldwork or sample collection outside the laboratory
What We Do
Terranova is rewriting the adaptation playbook by reshaping terrain itself. We do this with robots the size of cars that inject a wood slurry deep underground. This terraforming process precisely lifts properties out of their flood zones with no surface disturbance. This elevation is permanent and provides proactive protection for all types of infrastructure, wetlands, and new development projects. Our three robot and one mothership system can lift an acre by a foot every day, enabling rapid post-flood recovery. Please contact us at [email protected] for a quote on your elevation project.
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