Podbit · The a16z Show
Kavak launched the Jedi Academy, an internal program where every employee — from CEO to mechanics — completes a 6-week training and ships a production-ready AI agent. The message to staff was blunt: train and adapt, or this may not be the right place for you.
Where this was said
At 19:45 · chapter starts 15:55
Alejandro turns to one of the most audacious experiments in the episode. The team asked a simple but alarming question: could an AI do the CEO's job? Rather than debate it theoretically, they ran the experiment. Cuernavaca — a mid-sized Mexican city — was chosen as the test site. An AI agent was given the CEO role, access to all company systems, and a mandate to double monthly profits. It fell short of that goal but still delivered 50% profit growth in its first month [1] — Alejandro Maza Ayala "AI CEO raised profits 50% in 1 month: An AI agent deployed as 'CEO' of Kavak's Cuernavaca city operation increased profits by 50% within it…" 16:24 — by making Fields Medal-level analytical moves across inventory rotation, financing penetration, and customer satisfaction simultaneously. It sent daily task plans to every physical worker via message and collected voice-note updates on progress. For roles where physical dexterity remains irreplaceable — the company's approximately 800 mechanics — Kavak took a different approach. It built 'El Mike', an AI sidekick inspired by Ratatouille's Remy that guides mechanics through inspections step by step. Since launch, inspection quality rose, repair speed increased, costs fell, and warranty claims dropped by roughly 26% [2] — Alejandro Maza Ayala "Warranties down ~26% post-AI rollout: Since deploying AI sidekick agents to Kavak's mechanics, warranty claims fell by approximately 26%, r…" 17:58 .
Kavak carved out a city in Mexico, gave an AI agent the CEO role, and watched it raise profits by 50% in its first month. The agent sent daily task plans to every physical worker, monitored KPIs in real time, and micromanaged inventory, financing, and customer satisfaction simultaneously.
An AI agent deployed as 'CEO' of Kavak's Cuernavaca city operation increased profits by 50% within its first month.
Physical dexterity is still irreplaceable. So for Kavak's 800 mechanics, the company built 'El Mike' — an AI sidekick inspired by Ratatouille's Remy, guiding mechanics through inspections and repairs. Result: faster inspections, higher quality cars, and a 26% drop in warranty claims.
Since deploying AI sidekick agents to Kavak's mechanics, warranty claims fell by approximately 26%, reflecting higher-quality car inspections.
Your brain only rewires when there's a gap between where you are and where you want to be. Errors trigger elevated norepinephrine and epinephrine, which chemically tag the synapses that need to change. Sleep then seals the new wiring. The uncomfortable agitation you feel while learning something hard is not a problem to fix — it's the mechanism itself.
The best way to consolidate and accelerate learning isn't re-reading or visualization — it's deliberately trying to recall what you know, hitting the wall of what you don't, and going to look it up. That gap triggers the same norepinephrine response as making errors in physical practice. It's why drivers used to have to retake tests, and why physicians still do.
A baseball-playing junior who learned about compound interest now wants to quit the sport to start working and investing. George says let him decide and own it. Jade says team sports build something a job can't replace — try doing both during off-season first before making the call permanent.
May is 33, carries $69K in combined household debt, and wants to spend 11–13 years training to become a forensic pathologist at $14K/year in tuition. The prerequisite is non-negotiable: zero debt before a single class. Then, with the spouse earning $4,500/month and able to run the household debt-free, cash-flowing medical school is genuinely possible.
The worst AI outcome for young people isn't cheating on homework. It's that passive, mindless consumption strips away the motivation and agency their brains need to develop. The second worst outcome is banning AI from classrooms entirely. The winning path is giving students AI-powered agency.
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After the KSI show exposed how hard physical comedy really is, Andrew Santino sincerely proposed doing a semester at clown school in France. Bobby agreed. This is apparently a real plan.
K-12 schools ask students to sit still, raise their hand, use fine motor skills, and be pleasers — behaviors that describe girls more than boys. Boys are twice as likely to be suspended for the same behavior, and five times as likely if they're Black. The system needs male teachers, national service, and kindergarten starting at 6 for boys.
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