The Engine supports Tough Tech founders working to solve the world’s most pressing challenges in climate, health, and advanced systems. We do this through powerful founder programs, access to shared infrastructure and labs, and by convening a national network of corporate partners, investors, universities, experts, and other organizations committed to helping breakthrough technologies reach the world.
The Engine's community includes approximately 160 companies developing science- and engineering-based technologies across areas including energy, advanced materials, biotechnology, manufacturing, computing, robotics, and other advanced systems.
The Engine is seeking a Strategic Partnerships Intern for a six-month temporary position supporting the execution and management of strategic partnerships across our Tough Tech ecosystem.
Reporting to the Director of Partnerships, this role will work closely with corporate partners, investors, founders, and internal teams to translate relationships into tangible opportunities for The Engine's community of approximately 140 companies.
The Associate will help identify and execute opportunities that connect founders with prospective customers and commercial partners, investors and sources of capital, technical expertise, infrastructure, and other resources that can help companies develop and scale breakthrough technologies more efficiently.
This is a highly collaborative and execution-oriented role for someone who is intellectually curious, comfortable working across science, technology, and business, and excited by the opportunity to help early-stage companies navigate the path from breakthrough technology to commercial impact.
Key Responsibilities
Support strategic partner relationships by helping manage ongoing engagement with corporate, investor, philanthropic, and ecosystem partners and ensuring commitments, opportunities, and follow-up activities are executed effectively.
Connect Engine companies to commercial opportunities by understanding partner priorities and company needs and facilitating introductions to prospective customers, strategic partners, pilot opportunities, technical collaborators, and other potential pathways to market.
Support investor and capital connections by helping identify relevant investors for Engine companies, coordinating investor introductions and programming, and supporting events and initiatives designed to connect founders with sources of capital.
Translate partnerships into founder value by working with internal teams and external partners to identify resources that can help Tough Tech companies develop technologies more capital efficiently, including technical expertise, equipment, services, infrastructure, software, and other forms of support.
Develop an understanding of The Engine's company community, including company technologies, business models, development milestones, commercial priorities, and fundraising needs, in order to identify relevant opportunities and connections.
Coordinate partnership activations and programs, including partner meetings, company introductions, office hours, workshops, Innovation Days, investor engagements, founder programming, and other strategic initiatives.
Prepare partner and company materials, including company shortlists, briefing documents, presentations, meeting materials, partnership updates, and follow-up communications.
Conduct research and analysis on companies, industries, technologies, investors, corporate innovation priorities, and emerging partnership opportunities.
Maintain strong operational discipline around partnership activity by tracking introductions, commitments, meetings, opportunities, and follow-ups in The Engine's CRM and other internal systems.
Collaborate across The Engine with programs, community, events, communications, and leadership teams to ensure partnerships are coordinated effectively and deliver meaningful value to founders.
Support additional partnership development, ecosystem initiatives, and special projects as needed.
Qualifications
Bachelor's degree required; recent graduates, graduate students, or MBA candidates are encouraged to apply.
Academic or professional background in engineering, biology, chemistry, physics, materials science, climate or energy, another physical or life science discipline, business, or a related field.
Strong interest in emerging technologies, entrepreneurship, commercialization, venture capital, corporate innovation, or the startup ecosystem.
Ability to quickly understand complex scientific or technical concepts and communicate their commercial relevance to nontechnical audiences.
Strong interpersonal skills and comfort engaging with founders, investors, corporate executives, technical experts, and other external stakeholders.
Excellent written and verbal communication skills.
Highly organized, detail-oriented, and able to manage multiple projects, relationships, and follow-up activities simultaneously.
Demonstrated initiative and ability to operate effectively in a fast-moving, entrepreneurial environment.
Strong research, analytical, and problem-solving skills
Preferred: Startups, venture capital, accelerators, incubators, or entrepreneurship programs
Preferred: Corporate innovation, strategy, business development, or partnerships
Preferred: Technology commercialization or university technology transfer
Preferred: Consulting, investment banking, or other analytically rigorous business environments
Preferred: Scientific or engineering research
Preferred: Climate tech, biotech, advanced manufacturing, robotics, computing, materials, or other Tough Tech sectors
Preferred: CRM platforms and relationship-management tools
We recognize that strong candidates may come from a variety of academic and professional backgrounds. The ideal candidate will bring a combination of technical curiosity, business judgment, relationship-building skills, and strong execution.
Skills Required
- Bachelor's degree
- Academic or professional background in engineering, biology, chemistry, physics, materials science, climate or energy, another physical or life science discipline, business, or a related field
- Strong interest in emerging technologies, entrepreneurship, commercialization, venture capital, corporate innovation, or the startup ecosystem
- Ability to understand complex scientific or technical concepts and communicate their commercial relevance to nontechnical audiences
- Strong interpersonal skills and comfort engaging with founders, investors, corporate executives, technical experts, and external stakeholders
- Excellent written and verbal communication skills
- Highly organized and detail-oriented, with the ability to manage multiple projects, relationships, and follow-up activities simultaneously
- Demonstrated initiative and ability to operate effectively in a fast-moving, entrepreneurial environment
- Strong research, analytical, and problem-solving skills
- Experience with startups, venture capital, accelerators, incubators, or entrepreneurship programs
- Experience with corporate innovation, strategy, business development, or partnerships
- Experience with technology commercialization or university technology transfer
- Experience in consulting, investment banking, or another analytically rigorous business environment
- Scientific or engineering research experience
- Experience in climate tech, biotech, advanced manufacturing, robotics, computing, materials, or other Tough Tech sectors
- Experience with CRM platforms and relationship-management tools
What We Do
The Engine, built by MIT, is a venture firm that invests in early-stage companies solving the world’s biggest problems through the convergence of breakthrough science, engineering, and leadership. Our mission is to accelerate the path to market for Tough Tech companies by providing access to a unique combination of investment, infrastructure, and community.
