The Self-Improving Company | Kavak's AI Playbook episode artwork

EPISODE · Aug 10, 2026 · 37 MIN

The Self-Improving Company | Kavak's AI Playbook

from The a16z Show · host Gabriel Vasquez, Angela Strange, Alejandro Maza Ayala

Angela Strange and Gabriel Vasquez are joined by Alejandro Maza Ayala, Chief Product & AI Officer at Kavak, to unpack how the Latin American used-car marketplace rebuilt itself around AI agents, with 96% of customer interactions and 95% of transactions now handled by agents. Alejandro explains why Kavak decided that simply giving employees AI tools wasn't enough, and instead redesigned the company's systems, teams, and customer experience around agents. They discuss why Kavak spends as much engineering effort on evals as it does building agents, how its AI sellers outperform its human teams, and an experiment where an AI "CEO" increased profits in one city by 50% in its first month. The conversation also explores what happens to organizational structure when agents do most of the work, why Kavak trains everyone from executives to mechanics to build with AI, and Alejandro's argument that companies looking for incremental AI adoption may be missing the larger opportunity: redesigning the organization itself.   Resources: Follow Alejandro Maza Ayala on X: https://x.com/alehandromz Follow Angela Strange on X: https://x.com/astrange Follow Gabriel Vasquez on X: https://x.com/GEVS94 Stay Updated:Find a16z on YouTube: YouTubeFind a16z on XFind a16z on LinkedInListen to the a16z Show on SpotifyListen to the a16z Show on Apple PodcastsFollow our host: https://twitter.com/eriktorenberg Please note that the content here is for informational purposes only; should NOT be taken as legal, business, tax, or investment advice or be used to evaluate any investment or security; and is not directed at any investors or potential investors in any a16z fund. a16z and its affiliates may maintain investments in the companies discussed. For more details please see a16z.com/disclosures. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Episode metadata supplied by the publisher feed · Published Aug 10, 2026

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Angela Strange and Gabriel Vasquez are joined by Alejandro Maza Ayala, Chief Product & AI Officer at Kavak, to unpack how the Latin American used-car marketplace rebuilt itself around AI agents, with 96% of customer interactions and 95% of transactions now handled by agents. Alejandro explains why Kavak decided that simply giving employees AI tools wasn't enough, and instead redesigned the company's systems, teams, and customer experience around agents. They discuss why Kavak spends as much engineering effort on evals as it does building agents, how its AI sellers outperform its human teams, and an experiment where an AI "CEO" increased profits in one city by 50% in its first month. The conversation also explores what happens to organizational structure when agents do most of the work, why Kavak trains everyone from executives to mechanics to build with AI, and Alejandro's argument that companies looking for incremental AI adoption may be missing the larger opportunity: redesigning the organization itself.

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The Self-Improving Company | Kavak's AI Playbook

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