8 AI Programs for High School Students in Texas
AI programs for high school students are a fantastic way to dive into practical skills, industry exposure, and valuable connections. You’ll get hands-on experience training machine-learning models, collaborating on real-world AI projects, and building a network of mentors and peers. Top colleges and leading organizations offer many of these opportunities.
If you’re passionate about AI, data science, or robotics, you’ll want to explore these pathways early to boost your resume and sharpen your technical toolkit.
With so many options, it can be tough to know where to start, so we’ve narrowed the field to 8 AI programs for high school students in Texas! In the sections that follow, you’ll find detailed overviews of each program’s focus, dates, deadlines, and eligibility so that you can zero in on the best fit for your goals.
1. UT Austin Academy for Machine Learning
The UT Austin Academy for Machine Learning is a one-week residential program that immerses rising 10th–12th graders in Python programming, data science, and the fundamentals of machine learning. You’ll work with UT Computer Science faculty and industry experts, getting practical experience building and evaluating models in Jupyter Notebook using pandas and scikit-learn.
Midweek, you and your teammates will tackle a capstone project where you’ll focus on designing, training, and presenting your own predictive model. You’ll also attend engaging seminars on AI ethics and career pathways, and take guided tours of live research labs. Since cohorts are limited to about 30 students, you’ll receive one-on-one support. Limited need-based scholarships are also available for those looking to participate.
Location: University of Texas at Austin, TX
Acceptance rate/cohort size: 30 students per session
Dates: Session 1: June 1 – 6 | Session 2: July 20 – 25
Application deadline: May 11 | June 29. Apply here!
Eligibility: Rising grades 10–12
Cost/Stipend: $2,100 tuition; scholarships available.
2. Veritas AI Internship Program
The Veritas AI Internship Program is an eight-week, fully remote experience founded and run by Harvard graduate students, where high schoolers tackle real-world AI/ML challenges at VC-backed startups. You’ll be paired one-on-one with engineers and researchers from top organizations like Google, Microsoft, Wharton, and McKinsey, giving you direct exposure to industry-scale codebases and deployment best practices.
Throughout the program, you will participate in weekly professional development workshops that cover a range of topics, including AI ethics, version control, and data quality metrics. You'll also collaborate in small teams to prototype features, such as recommendation engines or computer vision classifiers. Near the end, you’ll showcase your work at a hands-on “Demo Day,” pitching your solutions to startup founders and investors to sharpen your presentation skills and grow your network. And if cost is a concern, financial aid is available to help make this opportunity accessible!
Location: Virtual
Acceptance rate/cohort size: 50 students per cohort
Dates: Varies by cohort (multiple summer cohorts)
Application deadline: Varies according to cohort. Apply here!
Eligibility: High school students with prior AI/ML experience.
Cost/Stipend: $2,490 tuition; partial financial aid available.
3. Lumiere Research Scholar Program
The Lumiere Research Scholar Program pairs high school students with PhD-level mentors from Harvard, Oxford, and Stanford for an immersive, fully virtual research experience. During a 12-week cohort, you’ll select an AI-related topic such as natural language processing or deep learning optimization, and co-design an independent research project with your mentor.
Each week, you’ll dive into one-on-one sessions covering experimental design, literature review, and advanced data-analysis techniques, while attending workshops on academic writing and publication strategy. You’ll submit a 15-page research paper and then present at a virtual “Lumiere Research Symposium,” honing your critical-thinking and scientific-communication skills. And to make sure financial barriers don’t hold anyone back, financial aid grants are offered through the Lumiere Research Inclusion Foundation!
Location: Virtual.
Acceptance rate/cohort size: 500 spots worldwide; highly selective.
Dates: Spring, Summer, Fall, Winter sessions (12 weeks each).
Application deadline: Regular admission for upcoming Summer Cohort I: May 11. Apply here!
Eligibility: Enrolled grades 9–12; GPA ≥ 3.3 (or equivalent); financial-need essays for aid.
Cost/Stipend: $2,400–$4,300 tuition; need-based grants available.
4. UT Austin Academy for Robotics
The Academy for Robotics at UT Austin is a one-week residential workshop that engages rising 10th–12th graders in the design, programming, and testing of autonomous robots. UT Computer Science and Engineering faculty will guide you as you learn Python robotics libraries, sensor integration, and AI-driven control strategies through hands-on labs.
Working in small teams, you and your peers build robots capable of navigating obstacle courses, following lines, or retrieving objects. You’ll also get exclusive site visits to the UT Robotics Lab to observe graduate research in autonomous systems up close. The week wraps up with a “Robotics Showcase,” where you present your robot’s demo to family, faculty, and fellow students.
Location: University of Texas at Austin, TX
Acceptance rate/cohort size: 25 students
Dates: Session 1: June 15 – 20 | Session 2: June 22 – 27
Application deadline: May 25 | June 6. Apply here!
Eligibility: Rising grades 10–12; no prior robotics experience required
Cost/Stipend: $2,100 tuition; scholarships available
5. NASA OSTEM Summer Internships
The NASA Office of STEM Engagement (OSTEM) Summer Internship is a paid program that places high school students (age 16 and up) at NASA centers — like Johnson Space Center in Houston — working on robotics, E3arth-science data analysis, and AI-driven autonomy. You’ll be mentored one-on-one by NASA scientists and engineers, learning to use MATLAB, Python, or Simulink as you tackle real projects, and you’ll take part in weekly professional seminars to sharpen your STEM communication skills.
Interns either join full-time on-site or follow a hybrid schedule, and you’ll earn a stipend that reflects your academic level and the length of your session. The agency-wide application process means you could find yourself collaborating with teams from aeronautics, astrophysics, or even planetary science, giving you a broad view of federal STEM careers. At the end of your internship, you’ll present your project at a capstone showcase, demonstrating not only your technical growth but also the professional polish that comes from working with NASA’s best!
Location: NASA centers nationwide (e.g., Houston, TX)
Acceptance rate/cohort size: 2,000 interns agency-wide
Dates:
Spring: 16 weeks (mid-January - early May)
Summer: 10 weeks (late May - August)
Fall: 16 weeks (late August - mid-December)
Application deadline:
Fall: May 16
Spring: September 12
Summer: February 27
Eligibility: U.S. citizen; full-time grades 10–12; GPA ≥ 3.0; age ≥ 16.
Cost/Stipend: Paid stipend (varies by session).
6. iD Tech: Artificial Intelligence & Machine Learning Camp
The iD Tech Artificial Intelligence & Machine Learning Camp is a one-week, on-campus program that introduces high school students to foundational AI concepts, including neural networks, computer vision, and reinforcement learning. You’ll work in small groups under the guidance of experienced instructors with industry backgrounds, completing hands-on labs that involve building AI models in a structured lab environment. In these sessions, you can train neural networks to recognize images or experiment with reinforcement-learning agents, applying theory to practical challenges.
Beyond technical skills, the program weaves in daily “innovation challenges” — for example, programming a virtual agent to navigate a maze, to boost creativity and teamwork. Evenings and weekends include social events, campus tours, and networking sessions with university TAs, providing a sneak peek into the real world of AI research and study. The week concludes with a live demo day where each team presents their project to peers and family, mirroring a professional pitch session.
Location: Various university campuses (e.g., Stanford, MIT)
Acceptance rate/cohort size: ~20 students per location
Dates: Session slots available on June 16 – 20, June 30 – July 4, and July 14 – 18
Application deadline: Rolling until full. Check out the location and date options to apply for here!
Eligibility: Ages 13–17; beginner to advanced skill levels
Cost/Stipend: $1,199/week; scholarships available
7. Stanford AI4ALL
Stanford AI4ALL is a summer initiative aimed at introducing high school students to artificial intelligence (AI). Participants benefit from lectures, hands-on research projects, and mentorship from Stanford faculty and graduate students. Students deepen their understanding of AI through projects and research with Stanford's faculty, experimenting with applications like robotics and natural language processing for practical exposure to advanced technologies.
Beyond technical education, Stanford AI4ALL provides students with essential career development resources. It offers workshops that help students navigate the paths to higher education and job opportunities in AI. Networking with professionals and fellow students in the field enriches the program, fostering a community of aspiring innovators.
Location: Virtual
Acceptance rate/cohort size: Highly selective; cohort size not specified
Dates: June 18 – July 2
Application deadline: January 24
Eligibility: 9th graders or rising 10th graders; must be 14+ by the program start; preference for students with math or computer skills; open to international applicants.
Cost/Stipend: $4,000; full financial aid available for qualifying students.
8. Stanford Center for Artificial Intelligence in Medicine and Imaging (AIMI) Summer Research Internship
Stanford’s AIMI Summer Research Internship is a two-week virtual program designed for high school students interested in the impact of artificial intelligence on healthcare. Participants engage in lectures, group projects, and guidance from Stanford researchers to explore both technical and clinical perspectives of AI applications in medicine.
The program covers essential concepts and principles of machine learning tailored for healthcare, along with approaches to evaluate and assess machine learning models in this domain. Unlike the AIMI Bootcamp, which centers on basic technical skills for AI in medicine, this internship offers a deeper dive into AI's practical applications, highlighting research, health equity, and innovation within the healthcare sector.
Location: Virtual
Acceptance rate/cohort size: 25 students per program
Dates: June 16 – 27
Application deadline: February 28
Eligibility: High school students (entering 9th grade through 12th grade in Fall), over the age of 14 by the start of the program
Cost/Stipend: $850 + $40 application fee