Research Intern - Gray Systems Lab (GSL)

Microsoft is hiring a Research Intern - Gray Systems Lab (GSL) in Madrid, Spain. When: Starts June 2027. Posted November 12, 2026. Checked against the employer's posting on November 12, 2026.

Research Internships at Microsoft provide a dynamic environment for research careers with a network of world-class research labs led by globally recognized scientists and engineers.

Our researchers and engineers pursue innovation in a range of scientific and technical disciplines to help solve complex challenges in diverse fields, including computing, healthcare, economics, and the environment.

Gray Systems Lab (GSL) is an applied research lab within Azure Data. We conduct research and development in databases, big data, and cloud systems, working closely with product teams to design innovative solutions to real-world problems.

Our team is friendly and inclusive. We focus on a variety of exciting areas, including: machine learning for systems, reinforcement learning, fine-tuning and post-training techniques, agentic workflows and systems, resource management, query optimization and execution.

We also work on workload optimization, graph analytics, data storage formats and governance, modern and emerging hardware (e.g., GPUs, NVM, and FPGAs), program analysis, data provenance, and ontologies.

Our work spans both Microsoft internal and open-source systems, including Fabric, Spark, SQL Server, MySQL, Apache Iceberg, and others. We provide opportunities to pursue ideas arising from internal collaborations and external partnerships with universities, while remaining active scholars in the research community.

We are looking for highly motivated graduate students interested in cutting-edge research conducted in close collaboration with advanced industry product groups.

Past internships have resulted in both production-system impact and publications at top conferences. Applicants should demonstrate a track record in one or more areas of systems, databases, or data science, as well as an aptitude for hands-on system building and rigorous experimental design, including running and analyzing experiments at scale.

• Contract Length: 12 weeks • Location: Barcelona Spain • Start Date: June 2027 Responsibilities • Turn research questions and theory into practical work during a 12-week research internship.

• Work with a dedicated mentor throughout the internship. • Collaborate with other doctoral interns and leading researchers on research and development projects.

• Present your research findings to mentors, peers and the wider research community. • Take part in the research community and build a professional network.

• Contribute to research in your area of study while growing your own career. Qualifications Required Qualification • Currently pursuing a PhD degree in computer science, statistics, mathematics, or related technical field.

Preferred Qualifications • Experience with one or more general purpose programming languages, such as Python, Java, C#, C++, Rust. • Experience with one of the following: PostgreSQL, MySQL, SQL Server, Spark, Apache Iceberg, CUDA, or other database or big data systems.

• Experience contributing to research communities and/or efforts, including publishing papers (being listed as author) at academic conferences. • Should be able to take initiative but also follow a research/productization plan and work well as part of a team.

• Excellent critical thinking and communication skills. The base pay for this internship is € 4,000.00 per month. Certain roles may be eligible for benefits and other compensation.

Find additional benefits and pay information here: https://careers.microsoft.com/v2/global/en/corporate-pay/interns-corporate-pay.html This position will be open for a minimum of 5 days, with applications accepted on an ongoing basis until the position is filled.

Microsoft is an equal opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to age, ancestry, citizenship, color, family or medical care leave, gender identity or expression, genetic information, immigration status, marital status, medical condition, national origin, physical or mental disability, political affiliation, protected veteran or military status, race, ethnicity, religion, sex (including pregnancy), sexual orientation, or any other characteristic protected by applicable local laws, regulations and ordinances.

If you need assistance with religious accommodations and/or a reasonable accommodation due to a disability during the application process, read more about requesting accommodations.