Chipotle’s gearing up for its chaotic "burrito season" with a little help from an AI sidekick. The fast-casual chain is unleashing its chatbot, dubbed "Ava Cado," to snag 20,000 new workers for the March-to-May rush—its busiest the year. This isn’t some one-off experiment either; big brands are increasingly leaning on AI to sift through job applicants, even if the tech’s still got some rough edges to smooth out.
Take Evalyn Mendoza, a 33-year-old from California. She applied to Chipotle twice in the past year. Last summer, it was a straightforward process—fill out the form, done. But this January, she met Ava Cado. The bot asked basic stuff like her name, contact info, and when she could work, then booked her an interview at a Chipotle 35 minutes away in Selma. Quick and painless, right? Well, mostly. The tech’s slick, but it’s not flawless—some applicants have griped about glitches, like showing up for interviews only to find managers who didn’t know they were coming.
Chipotle’s not alone in this AI hiring wave. The chatbot comes from Paradox, a company that’s also hooked up Lowe’s, FedEx, and McDonald’s with similar tools. Mastercard and Stanford Health Care are in on it too, using Phenom’s AI platform. A Resume Builder survey found that 70% of business leaders are already using AI to recruit. Why? Speed and scale. At Chipotle, Ava Cado’s slashed the hiring timeline from 12 days to just four, jacked up application completions from 50% to over 85%, and nearly doubled the applicant pool since it debuted last October. “It’s like having extra hands on deck,” says Ilene Eskenazi, Chipotle’s HR chief, noting how it frees managers to focus on the crew and customers.
The catch? It’s not all smooth sailing. Reddit threads on Chipotle forums are buzzing with complaints—candidates getting stood up at interviews, managers blindsided by AI-scheduled appointments outside their hours. Paradox says it’s optional to sync calendars, and Chipotle insists Ava alerts managers, but the hiccups are real. Still, the company is touting an 89% approval rating from applicants, while Paradox claims a 98% satisfaction score across its clients. New tech, new problems—nothing unexpected there.
For Chipotle, this is about keeping its 3,700-plus locations humming when burrito cravings peak. With plans to grow to 7,000 North American spots, they’re betting AI can handle the hiring heavy lifting. Applicants like Mendoza seem to roll with it—her interview’s set, and she’s unfazed by the bot. As "burrito season" looms, Ava Cado’s proving that AI’s here to stay in the job hunt, kinks and all.