Fall 2026 Research Studio

Join the Questions Before They Become Answers.

IntelliLight Labs is opening a small Fall Research Studio for people interested in neuroscience, behavior, data, technology, human experience and science communication.

Our eight-active-week research practicum is designed for people who want to investigate meaningful questions, develop transferable research skills and leave with a substantive project they can discuss in a portfolio, résumé or future interview.

IntelliLight Labs sits at the intersection of neuroscience, physical environments, behavior and technology.

Our first product concept explores how light, sound, timing and environmental context might work together as part of a more responsive physical environment.

Unpaid
Remote
Approximately 4 hours per week
October 12 – December 11, 2026
Eight active learning weeks
Thanksgiving week off

This is an unpaid, limited-duration educational research practicum. Participants will not receive wages or employee benefits. The program is structured around guided learning, mentorship, transferable research skills, independent exercises, feedback and an individual project.

Participation does not constitute or guarantee employment with IntelliLight Labs or IntelliLight LLC.

Any future paid opportunity would involve a separate application and selection process.

Apply to the studio

Who this is for

The Fall Research Studio is ideal for undergraduate and graduate students, recent graduates and early-career researchers who are looking for a structured project through which they can develop and demonstrate their research, analytical, scientific, product or communication skills.

Current enrollment, academic credit and faculty sponsorship are not required to apply.

We are especially interested in people who enjoy asking questions before assuming they already know the answer.

A research studio, not a traditional internship

IntelliLight itself began as a question.

The Fall Research Studio is designed around the part of building that happens before there are clean answers: reading, questioning, testing assumptions, comparing evidence, recognizing limitations and learning how research should influence what comes next.

Participants select one primary research track and spend eight active learning weeks developing a project within that area.

The objective is not to provide participants with miscellaneous startup tasks or use unpaid participants to run routine company operations.

The objective is to create a structured learning environment in which participants can develop transferable skills, investigate a defined question and produce a substantive individual project.

What you will gain

/ Guided exposure to early-stage research and product thinking
/ Weekly virtual learning and discussion sessions
/ Individual mentorship and feedback
/ Independent research exercises
/ Experience working through an ambiguous early-stage research question
/ A portfolio-ready individual project
/ A final presentation
/ A written reflection
/ Experience that may be included on a résumé or LinkedIn profile
/ A program-completion letter following successful completion
/ The ability to request a professional reference based on participation and work directly observed by the IntelliLight Labs team

A professional reference is not automatically guaranteed and will be based on the team's direct experience supervising the participant and reviewing their work.

Program structure

Program: Fall 2026 IntelliLight Labs Research Studio
Dates: October 12 – December 11, 2026
Format: Remote
Time Commitment: Approximately four hours per week
Active Learning Period: Eight active learning weeks
Thanksgiving: Thanksgiving week off

/ Weekly virtual learning or research discussion
/ Independent research exercises
/ Individual project development
/ Flexible scheduling outside scheduled discussions
/ Mentor feedback
/ Final presentation
/ Written reflection

Practicum tracks

Data Analytics & Research Methods

Learn how early-stage teams turn broad questions into testable hypotheses and communicate data without overstating what it proves.

Data analytics
Statistics
Business intelligence
Behavioral research
Economics
Computer science
Information systems

Apply

FALL RESEARCH PRACTICUM: DATA ANALYTICS & RESEARCH METHODS TRACK

Unpaid | Remote | Approximately 4 hours per week

October 12–December 11, 2026

IntelliLight Labs is inviting a small number of participants to join our Fall Research Studio, an eight-active-week educational program exploring how research, data and responsible analysis can inform an emerging technology concept.

IntelliLight Labs sits at the intersection of neuroscience, physical environments, behavior and technology.

Our first product concept explores how light, sound, timing and environmental context might work together as part of a more responsive physical environment.

This track is designed for people who want to learn how early-stage teams turn broad questions into testable hypotheses, distinguish promising signals from incomplete evidence and communicate data without overstating what it proves.

This track may be especially relevant to people interested in data analytics, statistics, business intelligence, behavioral research, economics, computer science, information systems or related fields.

What you will explore

/ Turning assumptions into research questions
/ Survey and interview methodology
/ Exploratory analysis using sample, synthetic, public or appropriately de-identified data
/ Data visualization and research communication
/ Sample-size transparency
/ Limitations and uncertainty
/ User-versus-buyer behavior
/ Basic segmentation and pattern exploration
/ How analytical choices influence conclusions
/ The difference between correlation, preference and product evidence

What you will gain

/ Guided exposure to early-stage research and product thinking
/ Experience translating ambiguous questions into analytical frameworks
/ Individual mentorship and feedback
/ Practice communicating analytical limitations responsibly
/ A portfolio-ready research or analytics project
/ Experience you may include on your résumé or LinkedIn profile
/ A program-completion letter following successful completion
/ The ability to request a professional reference based on participation and work directly observed by the IntelliLight Labs team

Program structure

/ Eight active learning weeks
/ Approximately four hours per week
/ Weekly virtual discussion and learning session
/ Independent research exercises
/ Flexible scheduling around other commitments
/ Thanksgiving week off
/ Final presentation
/ Written reflection

This is an unpaid, limited-duration educational research practicum.

Participants will not receive wages or employee benefits.

The program is structured around guided learning, research methodology, feedback and an individual project.

Participation does not constitute or guarantee employment with IntelliLight Labs or IntelliLight LLC.

Any future paid opportunity would involve a separate application and selection process.

Current enrollment, academic credit and faculty sponsorship are not required to apply.

This track is ideal for undergraduate and graduate students, recent graduates and early-career researchers who want to build and demonstrate analytical and research skills through a structured project.

To apply

Submit your résumé and a brief response to:

What is one assumption about people, environments or technology that you would want to investigate, and how might you test it?

Neuroscience & Bioscience Research

Critically evaluate scientific literature and translate existing evidence into responsible research questions about people and their environments.

Neuroscience
Biology
Cognitive science
Physiology
Psychology
Behavioral science

Apply

FALL RESEARCH PRACTICUM: NEUROSCIENCE & BIOSCIENCE RESEARCH TRACK

Unpaid | Remote | Approximately 4 hours per week

October 12–December 11, 2026

IntelliLight Labs is inviting a small number of participants to join our Fall Research Studio, an eight-active-week educational program exploring how neuroscience and bioscience research can inform questions about human interaction with physical environments.

IntelliLight Labs sits at the intersection of neuroscience, physical environments, behavior and technology.

Our first product concept explores how light, sound, timing and environmental context might work together as part of a more responsive physical environment.

This track is designed for people interested in neuroscience, biology, cognitive science, physiology, psychology, behavioral science or related fields who want experience critically evaluating scientific literature and translating existing evidence into responsible research questions.

The focus is not on proving IntelliLight's concept.

It is on learning how to ask whether available scientific evidence supports, challenges or complicates an idea.

What you will explore

Participants may work with published literature, public datasets, synthetic datasets or appropriately de-identified information.

This practicum does not involve clinical care.

It does not authorize participants to independently conduct human-subject experimentation on behalf of IntelliLight.

/ Sensory processing and environmental stimuli
/ Light, circadian biology and human behavior
/ Sound, attention and cognitive performance
/ Sleep, alertness, stress and environmental context
/ Neurophysiological measures used in published research
/ Behavioral measures used in neuroscience and psychology
/ Reading and comparing peer-reviewed studies
/ Distinguishing mechanistic evidence from behavioral association
/ Identifying confounding variables
/ Identifying limitations in published research
/ Recognizing gaps in existing literature
/ Developing testable scientific hypotheses from existing evidence
/ Responsible translation of laboratory findings into real-world research questions

What you will gain

/ Guided experience reading and evaluating scientific literature
/ Exposure to interdisciplinary neuroscience and human-environment research
/ Experience distinguishing strong evidence from suggestive evidence
/ Individual mentorship and research feedback
/ Experience creating an evidence map or structured literature review
/ A portfolio-ready scientific research project
/ Experience you may include on your résumé or LinkedIn profile
/ A program-completion letter following successful completion
/ The ability to request a professional reference based on participation and work directly observed by the IntelliLight Labs team

Program structure

/ Eight active learning weeks
/ Approximately four hours per week
/ Weekly virtual research discussion
/ Independent literature and research exercises
/ Flexible scheduling around other commitments
/ Thanksgiving week off
/ Final research presentation
/ Written reflection

This is an unpaid, limited-duration educational research practicum.

Participants will not receive wages or employee benefits.

The program is structured around guided learning, scientific research methods, mentorship, feedback and an individual project.

Participation does not constitute or guarantee employment with IntelliLight Labs or IntelliLight LLC.

Any future paid opportunity would involve a separate application and selection process.

Current enrollment, academic credit and faculty sponsorship are not required to apply.

This track is ideal for undergraduate and graduate students, recent graduates and early-career researchers who want a structured opportunity to explore neuroscience, bioscience and human-environment research.

To apply

Submit your résumé and a brief response to:

Choose one environmental factor, such as light, sound, temperature or timing. What question about its relationship with the brain or human behavior would you want to investigate?

Human Factors & Product Research

Identify the assumptions underneath an early product idea and design research capable of challenging them.

Human factors
Psychology
Behavioral science
HCI
UX research
Product research
Design research

Apply

FALL RESEARCH PRACTICUM: HUMAN FACTORS & PRODUCT RESEARCH TRACK

Unpaid | Remote | Approximately 4 hours per week

October 12–December 11, 2026

IntelliLight Labs is inviting a small number of participants to join our Fall Research Studio, an eight-active-week educational program examining how human behavior, research methods and product thinking intersect during the earliest stages of technology development.

IntelliLight Labs sits at the intersection of neuroscience, physical environments, behavior and technology.

Our first product concept explores how light, sound, timing and environmental context might work together as part of a more responsive physical environment.

This track is designed for people interested in human factors, psychology, behavioral science, HCI, UX research, product research, design research or related fields.

Instead of beginning with the assumption that a product idea is correct, participants will learn how to identify the assumptions underneath an idea and develop research approaches capable of challenging them.

What you will explore

/ Turning product ideas into falsifiable assumptions
/ Human factors and environmental behavior
/ User needs versus stated preferences
/ User-versus-buyer decision making
/ Interview methodology
/ Qualitative research design
/ Survey design
/ Common sources of research bias
/ Research ethics and responsible participant questions
/ Developing user-research frameworks
/ Identifying alternative explanations for observed behavior
/ Translating research findings into questions rather than unsupported conclusions
/ Recognizing when product assumptions are being treated as facts

What you will gain

/ Guided exposure to early-stage human-centered research
/ Practice designing research before designing solutions
/ Experience identifying hidden assumptions inside product ideas
/ Individual mentorship and feedback
/ Experience analyzing ambiguous behavioral questions
/ A portfolio-ready product-research case study
/ Experience you may include on your résumé or LinkedIn profile
/ A program-completion letter following successful completion
/ The ability to request a professional reference based on participation and work directly observed by the IntelliLight Labs team

Program structure

/ Eight active learning weeks
/ Approximately four hours per week
/ Weekly virtual discussion and research workshop
/ Independent research exercises
/ Flexible scheduling around other commitments
/ Thanksgiving week off
/ Final research presentation
/ Written reflection

This is an unpaid, limited-duration educational research practicum.

Participants will not receive wages or employee benefits.

The program is structured around guided learning, mentorship, research methodology, feedback and an individual project.

Participation does not constitute or guarantee employment with IntelliLight Labs or IntelliLight LLC.

Any future paid opportunity would involve a separate application and selection process.

Current enrollment, academic credit and faculty sponsorship are not required to apply.

This track is ideal for undergraduate and graduate students, recent graduates and early-career researchers who want to build experience in human-centered research, behavioral research or early-stage product thinking.

To apply

Submit your résumé and a brief response to:

What is one product assumption you think teams often mistake for a fact, and how would you investigate whether it is actually true?

Science Communication & Digital Media

Study how complex scientific ideas can be communicated accurately through modern digital media without losing nuance.

Science communication
Digital media
Journalism
Marketing
Communications
Design
Psychology
Neuroscience

Apply

FALL RESEARCH PRACTICUM: SCIENCE COMMUNICATION & DIGITAL MEDIA TRACK

Unpaid | Remote | Approximately 4 hours per week

October 12–December 11, 2026

IntelliLight Labs is inviting a small number of participants to join our Fall Research Studio, an eight-active-week educational program exploring how complex scientific and technical ideas can be communicated accurately through modern digital media.

IntelliLight Labs sits at the intersection of neuroscience, physical environments, behavior and technology.

Our first product concept explores how light, sound, timing and environmental context might work together as part of a more responsive physical environment.

This track is designed for people interested in science communication, digital media, journalism, marketing, communications, design, psychology, neuroscience or related fields who want to explore how research can be translated for platforms such as Instagram, LinkedIn and other digital formats without losing scientific nuance.

The emphasis is on science communication research, audience understanding, experimentation and portfolio development.

This is not a social-media-manager position.

Participants are not being engaged to operate IntelliLight's day-to-day social media accounts or maintain routine posting requirements.

What you will explore

Participants may create mock posts, educational series, research explainers, campaign prototypes, content experiments or other portfolio materials as part of their individual project.

IntelliLight's founders retain responsibility for company account operations, publication decisions, posting schedules and routine business communications.

/ Translating scientific research for non-specialist audiences
/ Identifying the difference between an engaging claim and an unsupported claim
/ Communicating scientific uncertainty
/ Communicating limitations responsibly
/ How different digital platforms influence how information is consumed
/ Audience segmentation
/ Communication goals
/ Visual science communication
/ Short-form educational storytelling
/ Comparing different formats for explaining the same scientific idea
/ Responsible use of citations and source material
/ Developing prototype campaigns
/ Creating mock educational content
/ Evaluating different science-communication approaches
/ Basic engagement analysis using sample, synthetic or historical information where appropriate

What you will gain

/ Guided exposure to science communication strategy
/ Experience translating research into accessible digital formats
/ Practice distinguishing simplification from scientific distortion
/ Individual mentorship and feedback
/ Experience developing research-informed content concepts
/ A portfolio-ready digital communication project
/ Experience you may include on your résumé or LinkedIn profile
/ A program-completion letter following successful completion
/ The ability to request a professional reference based on participation and work directly observed by the IntelliLight Labs team

Program structure

/ Eight active learning weeks
/ Approximately four hours per week
/ Weekly virtual discussion and critique session
/ Independent communication and research exercises
/ Flexible scheduling around other commitments
/ Thanksgiving week off
/ Final portfolio presentation
/ Written reflection

This is an unpaid, limited-duration educational research practicum.

Participants will not receive wages or employee benefits.

The program is structured around guided learning, science communication methodology, mentorship, experimentation, feedback and an individual project.

Participation does not constitute or guarantee employment with IntelliLight Labs or IntelliLight LLC.

Any future paid opportunity would involve a separate application and selection process.

Current enrollment, academic credit and faculty sponsorship are not required to apply.

This track is ideal for undergraduate and graduate students, recent graduates and early-career researchers or communicators who want to build a thoughtful portfolio at the intersection of science and digital media.

To apply

Submit your résumé and a brief response to:

What is one scientific idea you think is often communicated badly online, and how would you explain it more responsibly?

Scientific Evidence & Technology Landscape

Learn to evaluate the scientific, technological and commercial landscape around an emerging idea through evidence rather than narrative.

Research
Technology
Innovation
Engineering
Science
Entrepreneurship
Economics
Strategy

Apply

FALL RESEARCH PRACTICUM: SCIENTIFIC EVIDENCE & TECHNOLOGY LANDSCAPE TRACK

Unpaid | Remote | Approximately 4 hours per week

October 12–December 11, 2026

IntelliLight Labs is inviting a small number of participants to join our Fall Research Studio, an eight-active-week educational program exploring how researchers can systematically evaluate the scientific, technological and commercial landscape surrounding an emerging idea.

IntelliLight Labs sits at the intersection of neuroscience, physical environments, behavior and technology.

Our first product concept explores how light, sound, timing and environmental context might work together as part of a more responsive physical environment.

This track is designed for people interested in research, technology, innovation, engineering, science, entrepreneurship, economics, strategy or related fields who want to learn how to distinguish genuine evidence from market narratives.

The objective is not to create a list of competitors.

It is to learn how scientific evidence, technical capability and commercial claims can be evaluated separately and then considered together.

What you will explore

/ Scientific landscape research
/ Technology landscape research
/ Literature and source-evaluation methods
/ Comparing academic claims with commercial claims
/ Identifying adjacent technologies and research fields
/ Developing structured evidence maps
/ Understanding what competing approaches actually measure
/ Distinguishing technical capability from demonstrated user value
/ Identifying unanswered questions
/ Identifying research gaps
/ Building comparison frameworks without forcing conclusions
/ Recognizing weak evidence hidden behind strong marketing language
/ Communicating uncertainty in strategic research

What you will gain

/ Guided experience conducting structured landscape research
/ Practice evaluating source quality and evidence strength
/ Exposure to interdisciplinary technology research
/ Individual mentorship and feedback
/ A portfolio-ready research or landscape project
/ Experience you may include on your résumé or LinkedIn profile
/ A program-completion letter following successful completion
/ The ability to request a professional reference based on participation and work directly observed by the IntelliLight Labs team

Program structure

/ Eight active learning weeks
/ Approximately four hours per week
/ Weekly virtual research discussion
/ Independent evidence-mapping exercises
/ Flexible scheduling around other commitments
/ Thanksgiving week off
/ Final presentation
/ Written reflection

This is an unpaid, limited-duration educational research practicum.

Participants will not receive wages or employee benefits.

The program is structured around guided learning, research methodology, mentorship, feedback and an individual project.

Participation does not constitute or guarantee employment with IntelliLight Labs or IntelliLight LLC.

Any future paid opportunity would involve a separate application and selection process.

Current enrollment, academic credit and faculty sponsorship are not required to apply.

This track is ideal for undergraduate and graduate students, recent graduates and early-career researchers who want to learn how emerging technologies can be evaluated through evidence rather than hype.

To apply

Submit your résumé and a brief response to:

When researching an emerging technology, how would you decide whether a claim is supported by evidence rather than simply repeated often?

IntelliLight Labs is an operating brand of IntelliLight LLC, a Pennsylvania limited liability company. The IntelliLight founding team is currently based in New York.

The Fall Research Studio is an unpaid, limited-duration educational research practicum. Participation does not constitute or guarantee employment with IntelliLight Labs or IntelliLight LLC.