Vannevar builds AI systems for the Department of War's most consequential missions. We have 125 deployments across every branch and combatant command spanning our core platform and five distinct products. An an example of how we work, when major combat operations started with Iran, we fielded a new product supporting 24/7 operations and 9,000+ users in three months.
How we build is our advantage: we deploy forward with the people who own the mission. Our engineers, product team, and CTO deploy forward to the point of friction, including visiting units in Ukraine. We focus on embedding directly with operational units supporting great power competition with China, combat operations with Iran, and counter-narcotics missions.
Vannevar Labs is seeking Mission Lead Interns for summer 2027. Interns may work remotely with frequent travel to customer sites, potentially 75% or more of the summer.
Mission Leads are customer-facing owners of mission outcomes. You will lead engagements with government stakeholders to identify high-value mission problems, shape pilots and deployments, and turn demonstrated mission value into durable, funded programs.
This role blends mission credibility with strong execution and technical intuition. You will operate with high autonomy in ambiguous environments, translate mission needs into clear technical narratives, and coordinate across functional teams (Product, Engineering, Mission, Security, and Operations) to deliver and scale.
U.S. Persons status with at least a current Top Secret/Sensitive Compartmented Information (TS/SCI) US DoD or IC clearance is required as this position will require the ability to access U.S. only data systems.
What you'll do- Embed with users. Sit on site with DOW customer groups and build deep intuition for their mission.
- Build trust. Earn credibility by understanding user problems and helping solve them over time.
- Turn ambiguity into hypotheses. Break complex mission problems into specific workflows that can be tested.
- Configure product workflows. Set up high-value workflows for users through creative, iterative configuration.
- Test and troubleshoot releases. Debug product issues on deployed DOW systems and work with engineering to resolve them.
- Generate mission wins. Identify what works, onboard users, and translate wins into evidence of impact.
- Develop new user groups. Build relationships with additional teams on site and identify where Vannevar can create value.
- Operate independently. Set priorities on site and push work through without waiting for perfect direction.
- Represent Vannevar. Be the face of the company with DOW users and customers.
- Incoming, first or second year MBA or MA students interested in business development and national security, intelligence or defense.
- A motivated problem solver who takes ownership, acts with urgency, and is comfortable with ambiguity. You like a challenge, and you don’t quit.
- Prior DoD mission user experience, domain knowledge, or military service. You understand our partners' organizational constructs and challenges because you lived them.
- U.S. Persons status with at least a current Top Secret/Sensitive Compartmented Information (TS/SCI) US DoD or IC clearance is required as this position will require the ability to access U.S. only data systems.
The salary range for this position is competitive with market rates. Individual pay is determined by experience, relevant education, and/or training and interview performance.
We are committed to protecting the privacy of all applicants. Official emails from the company will come from an @vannevarlabs.com domain. Under no circumstances will a legitimate representative from our company contact you to request passwords, financial information, or other sensitive personal data. Please be vigilant of potential scams.
Skills Required
- Incoming first- or second-year MBA or MA student
- Interest in business development and national security, intelligence, or defense
- Prior Department of Defense mission user experience, relevant domain knowledge, or military service
- U.S. Persons status
- Current Top Secret/Sensitive Compartmented Information (TS/SCI) U.S. DoD or IC clearance
What the Team is Saying
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Vannevar Compensation & Benefits Highlights
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Healthcare Strength — Healthcare is considered comprehensive, with top-tier medical, dental, and vision coverage highlighted alongside mental-health support and wellness stipends. These elements are consistently presented as core pillars of the package.
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Leave & Time Off Breadth — Time off is framed as generous, featuring unlimited PTO, shared downtime aligned to federal holidays, and a company-wide year-end break. The approach signals an expectation that employees actually disconnect and use their time.
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Parental & Family Support — Parental leave is described as fully paid for 12 weeks for all parents, with an additional 4 weeks for new mothers and flexibility to take leave in blocks over a year. Family-planning assistance, monthly caregiving stipends, and travel-related child/pet care reimbursement extend support beyond leave.
Vannevar Insights
What We Do
Vannevar combines Silicon Valley innovation with former special operators to build AI for real-world national security outcomes. Since our founding in 2019, Vannevar has deployed its technology across 125 missions, safeguarding our service members and improving our country's deterrence. We believe our military service members and intelligence officers deserve access to the best technology American innovation can offer, and we are mobilizing frontier technology for this mission. Our founders have 30 years of combined experience across AI labs, national security strategy, intelligence agencies and special operations. We're supported by a number of leading VCs, including Felicis, DFJ Growth, Point72, Costanoa, and General Catalyst. Vannevar is one of the most capital efficient defense tech companies, reaching early profitability and becoming a defense tech unicorn in 2024.
Why Work With Us
We pride ourselves on being a team of passionate, low-ego professionals who share a commitment to engineering excellence and a genuine concern for the people and AI agents we deliver. Vannevar is a company that truly cares about its people and one of our core principles is "put your wellbeing first".
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Vannevar Offices
Remote Workspace
Employees work remotely.
We are distributed across the map, but united by the mission. We go where the mission takes us and deliver where others can’t. Honolulu, Seattle, San Francisco, Washington D.C., New York. You decide what's next.
