Research & Operations Intern

About the Role

You will be the team's eyes and ears — researching markets, competitors, vendors and prospects so the team can move faster and make better decisions. Every output you produce will directly inform real business decisions across sales, partnerships, product and hiring.

If you are naturally curious, detail-oriented and take pride in turning raw information into clear, actionable insights — this role is for you.

What You Will Do

• Conduct market and competitor research across SEA speech and AI industries

• Analyse competitor pricing, positioning and product offerings

• Research and evaluate vendors and service providers for operational needs

• Identify and qualify leads and prospects for business development

• Support outreach and pipeline research for the BD team

• Conduct LinkedIn and social media research to support partnerships and hiring

• Assist with recruitment research and intern hiring support

• Handle ad-hoc research and operational tasks as needed by the team

What We're Looking For

• Strong research skills — you know how to find information that is not easy to find

• Clear and structured written communication — you turn research into usable outputs

• Detail-oriented and thorough — you do not miss things

• Proactive — you surface insights without being asked

• Comfortable working across multiple tasks and shifting priorities

• Familiar with LinkedIn, Google, and basic research tools

• Startup mindset — you get things done without hand-holding

Strong Plus

• Experience with market research, BD or competitive analysis

• Familiarity with CRM tools or prospecting tools

• Interest in AI, speech technology or the Southeast Asian market

• Prior internship experience in a startup environment

Who Will Thrive Here

• Curious people who enjoy digging for information

• Detail-oriented individuals who take pride in thorough, accurate work

• Fast workers who can handle multiple requests without dropping the ball

• People who treat every research task as a chance to add real value

What You'll Gain

• Broad exposure to business operations, BD, product and hiring at an AI startup

• Real research outputs used in live business decisions

• Direct collaboration with the founding team

• A strong foundation for roles in strategy, BD, operations or consulting

• Potential pathway to a full-time role based on performance

• This is an unpaid internship. No salary or stipend is provided at this stage.

About VALSEA
We're building the speech intelligence layer for Southeast Asia — turning real-world, accented, code-switched speech into structured, usable outputs for businesses.