Design Coordinator and "denim nerd" Ronald Pritipaul participated in Levi's Machine Learning Bootcamp. Levi Strauss & Co. recently graduated 43 non-technical employees who participated in its inaugural artificial intelligence and machine learning bootcamp, launched in May 2021. The bootcamp is "an intensive, full-time, fully paid eight-week training program where [participants] left their day-to-day jobs to complete this unique program," said a Levi's blog post. "In the bootcamp's inaugural cohort, we trained more than 40 employees -- 63 percent of whom were female, representing 14 locations around the world with employees from corporate, retail stores, distribution centers, and data centers." Participants entered the bootcamp with no background in coding or statistics, and emerged as tech-savvy employees "who know our company, know the business, and now also know data science, and they're applying these skills to actually change the industry," says Levi's Chief Strategy and Artificial Intelligence Officer Katia Walsh.

In what may be a sign of the times, Levi Strauss & Co. launched a first for the denim company: an artificial intelligence and machine learning bootcamp. But this one's not necessarily just for its engineers or tech developers -- it's also for the nontechie set in areas, like retail. Started in May 2021, the program saw its first wave of students graduate and take their training to different areas of the organization. The company marked the moment in a blog post published Tuesday. In it, Levi's described the Machine Learning Bootcamp as "an intensive, full-time, fully paid eight-week training program where [participants] left their day-to-day jobs to complete this unique program. In the bootcamp's inaugural cohort, we trained more than 40 employees -- 63 percent of whom were female, representing 14 locations around the world with employees from corporate, retail stores, distribution centers, and data centers."

In what may be a sign of the times, Levi Strauss & Co. launched a first for the denim company: an artificial intelligence and machine learning bootcamp …