About Link
Link Engine Management is a global leader in motorsport electronics and performance technology. With over 30 years of product development, we have established ourselves as global leaders in engine management software and systems because we listen to our customers, and we are smart people who build smart products.
Link Engine Management’s success comes from our people, our vision, our aspirations, and our passion for success; this is why we demonstrate such high levels of employee engagement and satisfaction. While proudly designing and manufacturing our products in New Zealand, we now export to over 80 countries, and subsequently have teams expanding across New Zealand, United Kingdom, Australia, Europe and the USA.
Summary
This project investigates how best to build a self-built, GPU-accelerated rendering engine capable of the real-time performance required by PCLink v2 — the cross-platform successor to Link’s professional ECU tuning software. The intern will research and evaluate candidate rendering technologies, settle on a suitable tech stack, and implement a prototype engine that displays hundreds of live parameters and high-frequency telemetry alongside complex, interactive charts. They will benchmark it against defined performance targets — including a comparison across browser engines (Chromium and WebKit) to inform the choice of cross-platform desktop shell such as Electron or Tauri — to determine whether Link can avoid costly third-party visualisation libraries.
Project Brief
PCLink v2 will replace Link’s Windows-only tuning software with a modern, cross-platform desktop application. Its interface is exceptionally data-dense: hundreds of live parameters and high-frequency telemetry — around 60 updates per second across roughly 100 data channels — must be rendered simultaneously with highly complex, interactive charts. Commercial charting libraries that can meet this bar are expensive to license on a shipped product and difficult to customise. Choosing the right technology to build a self-built engine is itself an open question, so this project first investigates the best approach, settles on a tech stack, and then implements and benchmarks a prototype. The student will:
- Research and evaluate candidate rendering technologies and libraries (for example WebGL, WebGPU, or Three.js, among other GPU-accelerated approaches) and settle on a suitable tech stack
- Build a synthetic data generator that emulates 60 Hz telemetry across roughly 100 channel
- Implement a GPU-accelerated time-series renderer using the chosen stack
- Apply modern rendering techniques such as static vertex buffers, uniform-driven pan and zoom, and level-of-detail decimation
- Support smooth interaction (zoom, pan, and value inspection) over a full session of up to twenty million data points
- Benchmark frame-rate and responsiveness against defined targets on representative hardware
- Compare rendering performance across browser engines (Chromium and WebKit) to inform the choice of cross-platform desktop shell, such as Electron versus Tauri
The outcome will be a recommended tech stack, guidance on the desktop-shell direction (for example Electron or Tauri), a working prototype, and a clear, evidence-based recommendation on the viability of a self-built rendering engine for PCLink v2.
Key Competencies and Skills Required
- Completed at least one year, preferably two or three, of Computer Science or Software Engineering.
- Proficient in JavaScript or TypeScript for frontend development and prototyping
- Familiar with real-time or graphics rendering concepts (e.g. HTML5 Canvas, WebGL, or similar)
- Comfortable working with structured, numeric data and basic performance profiling
- Additional Skills and Interests
- Interest in real-time graphics, GPU programming, or shaders (e.g. WebGL, WebGPU, Three.js)
- Understanding of data-visualisation principles
- Experience with performance optimisation of data-intensive applications (preferred)
How to Apply:
Please submit your CV and a cover letter clearly explaining why this internship is of interest and what you could bring to Link. Applications close 9th September
