The a16z Show

Snapshot · The a16z Show

The Self-Improving Company | Kavak's AI Playbook

Explore episode Aug 10, 2026

Where this was said

The Jedi Academy: Training Everyone to Build AI

At 20:00 · chapter starts 19:45

Gabriel asks the question that is on every executive's mind: how do you actually change your organization to work this way? Alejandro's answer is the Jedi Academy — a 6-week internal training program he designed and continuously updates. The name is half-joke, but the program is serious. Executives, engineers, finance staff, and mechanics all go through the same curriculum. At the end of 6 weeks, every participant ships a production-ready AI agent. The content cannot be outsourced to Stanford or any external provider because the field moves faster than any accreditation cycle. The philosophical message delivered to all staff was equally clear: Kavak is going this direction. Employees can train and grow with it, or they can find a better fit elsewhere — but there is no option C where the company stays the same. Alejandro credits this clarity with actually strengthening Kavak's culture rather than creating anxiety.

Similar snapshots