Why Chipotle is turning to AI as it steps up its seasonal hiring to 20,000

Lunchtime musings: think about the themes and analysis discussed here... it's not just about the egg market, but more broadly...

1) how industries might have solutions to a problem that does NOT get adopted (here: vaccines, containment, etc)...

2) barring a requirement to do so, industries might have other, less obvious reasons for not adopting what might seem to be a clear solution (here: vaccines are hard to administer to large flocks and could cause problems for exports where vaccines might not be accepted... not sure I get that roadblock as presence of avian flu often leads to countries banning imports from those countries)... and

3) solutions might be more complicated in practice than they seem (here: well, sure just keep the flocks indoors or away from wild geese/ducks... but then be sure that workers aren't also tracking the disease in on their boots/clothes)...

4) the cost for a solution can be complex and involve tradeoffs (here: culling a flock might be seen as easier and lower cost than vaccines or containment processes.... even if they have to rebuild their flocks and that takes time)...

5) adjacent industries might have their own issues... (here: the chicken broiler industry is concerned about the cost to them for any solution developed for the egg industry when they say they have been less affected by the avian flu)

6) shortages can be exacerbated by stockpiling... it's not always that there isn't enough to go around, but if people buy more than they need (panic buying) they can create a shortage

The nation’s biggest egg marketplace doesn’t own hens, farms, or processing plants.

From an office building in New Hampshire, roughly a dozen people facilitate the trading of billions of eggs a year, a task that shapes what Americans pay per dozen at the supermarket or for omelets at diners.

The Egg Clearinghouse, or ECI, is little known outside the industry: It operates an online marketplace that allows participants to place bids on eggs listed for sale and see the results of trades. Only ECI members—farmers and egg buyers—are allowed to trade.

Lately, there are a lot more buyers than sellers using the so-called “Wall Street of Eggs” with bird flu roiling the poultry market.

Elon Musk's social media platform X, formerly Twitter, is in talks to raise money at a $44 billion valuation, Bloomberg reports, citing anonymous sources. That's the same as what Musk paid for the company back in 2022, in a "remarkable turn of fortunes" after the takeover and subsequent loss of advertisers caused its value to plummet. The talks, which mark the first known investment round since it was taken private, are ongoing and could change.

Nikola Corporation said on Wednesday it had filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection and would pursue a sale of all or most of its assets, after grappling with rapid cash burn and struggling to raise funds in the past few quarters.

The development brings a close to a challenging journey, which included numerous leadership changes, choppy sales, and a plummeting share value.

EV firms that went public during the pandemic, promising to revolutionize the sector, such as Fisker, Proterr, and Lordstown Motors have filed for bankruptcy in recent years as funding for the capital-intensive operations dried up due to high interest rates and flagging demand.

Nikola said it decided to initiate a sale process of its assets to maximize value and ensure an orderly wind down.

The firm will continue some operations for trucks in the field and some hydrogen-fueling operations through the end of March.

The company listed assets of between $500 million and $1 billion, and estimated its liabilities were between $1 billion and $10 billion, according to a court filing.

Phoenix, Arizona-based Nikola was founded more than a decade ago. It went public in June 2020 and delivered its first vehicle in the December of the following year.

Viewership for the NBA All-Star Game has fallen off a cliff:

• 1993: 22.9 million viewers
• 2024: 5.4 million viewers

Many people have ideas on how to fix this – USA vs. the World, East vs. West with NBA Finals home-court advantage on the line, etc. — but the NBA really just needs to reset expectations.

All-Star Weekend should celebrate the players and be an entertainment experience for the fans — you don’t need 20 million viewers to accomplish that.

Nearly 15 million people watched Saturday Night Live’s 50th anniversary special on NBC, making it the network’s biggest primetime entertainment event in five years. Beyond that achievement, SNL consistently outperforms late-night shows, proving its value to NBC even as linear TV declines, per Vulture. In addition to driving Peacock subscriptions, SNL’s ability to stay relevant, adapt to digital platforms, and create viral moments makes it a pop-culture staple, solidifying its importance for NBC.

Shares of defense-technology startup Palantir slumped on Wednesday following a Washington Post report that the Pentagon intends to cut its defense budget by 8% annually over the next five years. The stock closed down 10% and continued to slide in after-hours trading. Palantir's push into artificial intelligence has helped fuel an 1,800% surge since the start of 2023. Contracts with the Department of Defense have also bolstered its business, with U.S. government sales jumping 45% last quarter.

The Fed is at a standstill. Minutes of the central bank’s meeting in January confirm the message that members have been making publicly about the need to pause a run of interest-rate cuts late last year. The Federal Reserve suggested it sees risk as roughly balanced now between faster inflation and a weakening labor market — with the impact of tariffs still looming. A fresh reading on consumer-price growth arrives next week.

The 45-day impact of Manhattan's congestion-pricing plan: car crashes are down 75% in the congestion relief zone, 7.5% fewer cars entered the zone, foot traffic is up, public transportation traffic is up, buses are traveling faster through the tunnels, late arrival of students on school buses have been cut in half, a sorely needed ~$3M/day in tolls to reinvest in our country's most economically important public transportation that is falling apart and serves all classes of people, and 6 out of 10 New Yorkers now favor the program. That doesn't even include benefits to air quality, public health, reduced wear and tear on expensive roads, reduced carbon emissions, and the list goes on.

Unfortunately, the program is now at risk of being shut down by the federal government. I wish MTA all the luck in their fight to protect this demonstrably successful and publicly beneficial transportation program.

DOGE Taps Into the Motherlode of Americans’ Private IRS Data: Big Questions, Clear Answers

The Department of Government Efficiency—better known as DOGE—has sparked a firestorm of debate with its latest move: accessing a vast trove of Americans’ private IRS data. This shadowy initiative, championed by efficiency-minded reformers, promises to streamline government operations and slash waste. But the plan’s reliance on sensitive tax records has raised eyebrows—and serious questions—about privacy, security, and the scope of government overreach. Here’s what’s at stake, and what we’ve uncovered to make sense of it all.

What’s Happening?

DOGE, a fledgling agency tasked with cutting bureaucratic fat, isn’t wasting time. Its proponents argue that tapping into IRS data—think income details, deductions, and financial histories—could unlock insights to optimize federal spending and root out inefficiencies. The logic? If you know where the money’s flowing, you can spot the leaks. But critics aren’t buying the rosy pitch, warning that this “motherlode” of personal information could become a Pandora’s box of misuse—or worse.

Why the Controversy?

The IRS doesn’t exactly have a sterling reputation for safeguarding data. Breaches, leaks, and sloppy handling have plagued the agency in the past, making the idea of handing over Americans’ tax files to a new, untested entity feel like a gamble. Privacy advocates are sounding the alarm: Who gets access? How long is the data kept? And what stops it from being weaponized—say, to target political foes or dig into private lives? These aren’t hypotheticals; they’re the kinds of risks that keep people up at night.

The Answers We’ve Found

DOGE backers insist there’s nothing to fear. They claim the data grab is narrowly tailored—focused solely on aggregate trends, not individual dossiers. Think less “spying on Joe from Ohio” and more “mapping the big picture.” Safeguards, they say, are baked in: encryption, strict access controls, and oversight to keep things legit. The goal? Smarter policy, not a surveillance state.

Skeptics aren’t convinced. They point to the government’s spotty track record—remember the 2015 OPM hack that exposed millions of federal workers?—and argue that “mission creep” could turn a noble idea into a nightmare. History backs them up: Give an agency a tool, and it rarely stays in the box.

What’s Next?

For now, DOGE’s plan is moving forward, though details remain murky. Congress is sniffing around, and lawsuits are likely on the horizon. The public, meanwhile, is left wrestling with a trade-off: efficiency versus privacy, progress versus trust. The stakes couldn’t be higher—because once the motherlode is tapped, there’s no putting it back.

Chipotle Mexican Grill Inc. is leaning on an artificial intelligence program called Ava Cado to speed up its hiring process as it launches its largest-ever spring recruitment effort, the restaurant chain said Wednesday.

The AI program featured on Chipotle’s recruitment website has shortened the average time it takes a job seeker to fill out an application and has helped the restaurant chain increase its application completion rate to 85% from 50%, the company said.

Chipotle is planning to hire 20,000 seasonal employees this year, the biggest number to date, ahead of its hiring targets of 19,000 workers in 2024 and 15,000 in 2023.

Chipotle

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said it is hiring workers to ensure that its more than 3,700 restaurants are fully staffed for what it calls Burrito Season, the restaurant chain’s most active time of year.

Applicants will likely have a conversation with the AI-generated “Ava Cado,” who introduces herself as a “virtual team member.” Visitors to the company’s jobs website are greeted by the avatar, who says, “I can help you search and apply for opportunities or you can ask me anything about our business, culture, team, and more.

Checkbox — Tesla CEO Elon Musk and Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang are betting that recent advances in generative artificial intelligence will lead to mass adoption of robotics. Here’s what investors need to know.

“Ava Cado has made the hiring process more efficient for Chipotle’s restaurant teams,” the company said, adding that the average time it takes a candidate to complete their application and start work has dropped to four days from 12 days.

A Chipotle spokesperson did not comment on how much Chipotle has spent to create the program.

Chipotle initially announced its use of AI chat for hiring in October, in collaboration with privately held software company Paradox Inc., a maker of AI assistants for corporate hiring that launched in 2016.

Paradox-powered AI assistants help candidates schedule job interviews and remind them about upcoming meetings and onboarding tasks.

Paradox’s customer list of 1,000 also includes General Motors Co.

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, FedEx Corp.

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, McDonald’s Corp.

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, Shake Shack Inc.

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, Pfizer Inc.

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+1.29%

and Kraft Heinz Co.

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+1.60%

The company helps with job searches and applications, applicant screening, interview scheduling, and candidate prep, among other tasks.

General Motors has estimated that Paradox has generated $2 million in annual cost savings, according tothe software company’s website.

Chipotle is advertising its spring job openings in three TV commercials, featuring a general manager from Portland, Ore.; a certified training manager at a restaurant in Phoenix; and a general manager based in Texas.

Chipotle said it promoted 23,000 team members in 2024, with 85% of its restaurant-management positions filled from within the company. It also noted that five of Chipotle’s 11 regional vice presidents started their careers as crew members.

Chipotle is also aiming to increase its restaurant footprint to 7,000.

The restaurant chain books the most business during the period that includes the college basketball season and the Cinco de Mayo holiday.

Chipotle’s stock was down 2.1% on Wednesday. The stock has fallen 11.5% so far in 2025, while the S&P 500

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has gained about 4.3%.

The IRS will lay off roughly 7,000 workers in Washington and around the country beginning Thursday, a person familiar with the plans told the Associated Press.

The layoffs affect probationary employees with roughly one year or less of service at the agency and largely include workers in compliance departments, according to the person, who was not authorized to disclose the plans and spoke on condition of anonymity Wednesday. Compliance work includes ensuring that taxpayers are abiding by the tax code, filing their returns, and paying their taxes, among other duties.

The layoffs are part of the Trump administration’s intensified efforts to shrink the size of the federal workforce through the Department of Government Efficiency by ordering agencies to lay off nearly all probationary employees who have not yet gained civil service protection. They come despite IRS employees involved in the 2025 tax season being told earlier this month that they would not be allowed to accept a buyout offer from the Trump administration until mid-May, after the taxpayer filing deadline.

It’s unclear how the layoffs may affect tax-collection services this year. As the nation’s revenue collector, the IRS was tasked during the Biden administration with targeting high-wealth tax evaders for an additional stream of income to the U.S., which is $36 trillion in debt. By the end of 2024, the IRS collected over $1.3 billion in back taxes from rich tax dodgers.

The IRS has roughly 90,000 employees total across the United States, according to the latest IRS data. Racial minorities make up 56% of the IRS workforce, and women represent 65%.

In addition to the planned layoffs, the Trump administration intends to lend IRS workers to the Department of Homeland Security to assist with immigration enforcement. In a letter sent earlier this month, DHS Secretary Kristi Noem asked Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent to borrow IRS workers to help with ongoing immigration crackdown efforts.

Representatives from the IRS and U.S. Treasury did not respond to requests for comment from the AP.

Microsoft has unveiled its first quantum computing chip, calling it a breakthrough that could solve “industrial-scale problems” in years rather than decades. The LinkedIn parent says the chip, Majorana 1, is powered by the world’s first so-called topoconductor, which is described as a new class of material that helps advance quantum technology. While artificial intelligence currently dominates the tech landscape, major companies are also racing to develop quantum computers: Google in December announced its own quantum chip, Willow.

Microsoft on Wednesday also announced a generative AI tool for its Xbox video game device that can design and animate scenes that would traditionally need human programming.
The AI model, Muse, is trained on data gathered from Xbox gamers and their controller usage.

The Agriculture Department is scrambling to rehire several workers who were involved in the government’s response to the ongoing bird flu outbreak that has devastated egg and poultry farms over the past three years.

The workers were among the thousands of federal employees eliminated on the recommendations of billionaire Elon Musk‘s Department of Government Efficiency, which is working to carry out Trump’s promise to streamline and reshape the federal government. Republican Rep. Don Bacon said the administration should be more careful in how it carries out the cuts. “While President Trump is fulfilling his promise to shed light on waste, fraud, and abuse in government, DOGE needs to measure twice and cut once. Downsizing decisions must be narrowly tailored to preserve critical missions,” said Bacon, who represents a swing district in Nebraska. The bird flu outbreak has prompted the slaughter of roughly 160 million birds to help control the virus since the outbreak began in 2022. Most of the birds killed were egg-laying chickens, so that has driven egg prices up to a record high of $4.95 per dozen on average. The federal government has spent nearly $2 billion on the response, including nearly $1.2 billion in payments to farmers to compensate them for their lost birds.

SafeSport Center changes targeted in the new bill aimed at sex abuse in sports A USDA spokesperson said the department “continues to prioritize the response to highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI)” and several key jobs like veterinarians, animal health technicians, and other emergency response personnel involved in the effort were protected from the cuts. However, some employees of the USDA’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service were eliminated. “Although several APHIS positions supporting HPAI were notified of their terminations over the weekend, we are working to swiftly rectify the situation and rescind those letters,” the department spokesperson said.

Politico and NBC News reported that the jobs that were eliminated were part of an office that helps oversee the national network of labs USDA relies on to confirm cases of bird flu and other animal diseases. It wasn’t immediately clear how many workers the department might be trying to rehire and whether any of them worked at the main USDA lab in Ames, Iowa. “At a time when producers are already grappling with the bird flu, the public is facing high prices, and all Americans are on edge about what broader spread of this virus could mean, the last thing the administration should have done was to eliminate these positions,” Democratic Sen. Amy Klobuchar said. “USDA must rehire these crucial personnel immediately.” Trump administration officials said this week that the USDA might change its approach to the bird flu outbreak so that maybe entire flocks wouldn’t have to be slaughtered when the disease is found, but they have yet to offer many details of their plan.