Embedded Software Engineer Intern - Fall 2026

Location: San Francisco, California, United States

Department: Engineering & Technology

Embedded Software Engineering Intern 

We are at the precipice of a global energy transition. At Redwood Materials, we are moving beyond battery recycling to build the most advanced, circular energy ecosystem on the planet. Our goal is to move the industry away from static, hardware-heavy infrastructure toward agile, software-controlled energy assets. 

While others build “black box” hardware, we are building software-defined power systems. Our Embedded Software team is responsible for the intelligence that drives our power stages and battery management systems, ensuring our energy storage solutions are safe, efficient, and capable of stabilizing the world's most demanding grids. 

As an Embedded Software Engineering Intern, you'll work alongside our engineers on the real-time firmware that drives our power conversion units. You'll get hands-on exposure to the intersection of silicon and power — helping write and test low-level code that controls high-speed switching, manages thermal safety, interfaces with battery packs, and communicates with broader site infrastructure. This is a great opportunity to apply what you've learned in coursework to real embedded systems that ship at scale, with mentorship from experienced engineers along the way. 

Responsibilities will include: 

• Real-Time Control Firmware: Support the design and implementation of bare-metal software for power electronics, gaining exposure to PWM generation, ADC synchronization, and timing logic. 

• Low-Level Architecture: Assist in developing and testing drivers for microcontroller peripherals (SPI, CAN, Ethernet) under the guidance of senior engineers. 

• Hardware-Software Collaboration: Work with power electronics controls engineers to understand how controls theory translates into embedded code running on Cortex-R and Cortex-M architectures. 

• Battery Management Systems: Get exposure to how our power conversion firmware interfaces with real battery packs — including cell voltage/temperature monitoring, state-of-charge and state-of-health estimation, and the communication protocols BMS units use to report status and safety limits. 

• Build & Test: Help maintain software build scripts and write testable code, gaining experience with CI/CD pipelines used to validate firmware before it reaches the lab. 

• System Debugging: Learn to profile and debug embedded code, developing familiarity with tools like oscilloscopes, logic analyzers, and JTAG/SWD debuggers. 

• Documentation & Process: Contribute to documentation and testing processes that support taking embedded systems from prototype toward production. 

Desired Qualifications: 

• Background: Currently pursuing a BS or MS in Electrical Engineering, Computer Engineering, Computer Science, or a related field. 

• Programming Foundations: Coursework or project experience in C, C++, or Rust; comfort reading and writing low-level code. 

• Embedded Interest: Some exposure to embedded systems, microcontrollers, or digital logic through coursework, personal projects, or prior internships. 

• Communication Protocols: Familiarity with concepts like SPI, I2C, UART, or CAN is a plus, even if only from classwork or personal projects. 

• Battery Systems Knowledge: Exposure to battery management systems (BMS) and energy storage fundamentals through coursework or projects is a plus, though not required. 

• Curiosity & Rigor: A safety-conscious mindset, strong attention to detail, and eagerness to learn how real-time, safety-critical software is built. 

• Bonus Qualifications: Any experience with build tools (Make, CMake), version control (git), or hands-on lab work with debugging hardware.