A 16-year-old developer, a university research lab, and a nonprofit are piloting a radical idea: AI training that ends with a job offer, not just a certificate.
By AyZar Outreach · May 2026
Ava Zarkesh, 16, the architect behind Syndara, an open-source AI training platform designed to expand career access for underserved students. (Photo: Myriad Hall/ Graphic & Interactive Design Major at CSUF)
In a small but ambitious pilot launching this May, a 16-year-old architect, a university research lab, and a nonprofit are coming together to test a bold idea: what if learning AI didn’t just teach skills—but led directly to a job?
That idea is now real. It’s called Syndara POD—and it’s designed for the students who are usually last in line for opportunities in a rapidly changing workforce.
How It Works
At its core, Syndara POD blends three forces into a single experience. An AI tutor works one-on-one with each student, adapting in real time. Human coaches—facilitators and industry professionals—step in to guide, mentor, and connect. And students don’t just learn—they build, tackling real-world challenges and presenting their work directly to employers.
The result is something closer to a fast-track into the workforce than a traditional course.
“It’s a tight, high-intensity model by design: short enough to scale, focused enough to matter.” — Ava Zarkesh, Platform Architect, Syndara |
Built for Access, Open by Design
The platform is the work of Ava Zarkesh—a remarkably advanced mind operating well beyond her years, not only in technical innovation but in her deep commitment to equity and access. At just 16, she has designed Syndara as an open-source AI training platform, freely available at Syndara.org under an MIT license. Built with the intention of expanding opportunity, the platform reflects a belief that cutting-edge tools should not be limited to those who already have access. The system is supported by Syndara.io, her own hosting site, which provides the underlying infrastructure powering the experience.
AyZar Outreach, a sponsor and an investor, will be operating Syndara POD as a workforce training program within its broader POD initiative.
University Research Partnership
Alongside this venture, Chapman University’s Howard REAL Lab is conducting research on its effectiveness as the program rolls out, with a focus on what equitable, AI-driven workforce training can actually achieve. They do that because they care.
Industry Advisors: Early Access to Tested Talent
The collaboration encompasses more than the developer, sponsor, and educational institution.
AyZar Outreach is also inviting industry professionals to step in—not as lecturers, but as Syndara Industry Advisors. The ask is intentionally small but highly impactful: a few hours over three weeks to help shape what’s taught and present industry challenges, show up for key sessions to inspire and ask questions, and evaluate final projects.
In return, advisors get something most hiring processes struggle to deliver: early access to motivated, tested talent. And if they see someone worth hiring, they can act on it immediately.
The Pilot: Santa Ana, May 2025
Now, the platform is moving out of development and into the real world, with its pilot launch set for May 18. Dr. Green of Caravel Health CPD —a forward-thinking, membership-based medical provider in Redlands—will serve as the Industry Advisor, helping guide the first cohort as they test and refine the system. His model, which emphasizes personalized care and accessibility, reflects the same kind of innovation and patient-centered thinking that Syndara aims to bring to workforce development.
“This is such a great program. I am honored to be a part of it!”
— Dr. Green, Caraval Health
Dr. Green of Caraval Health CPD, the inaugural Syndara Industry Advisor, with an interning Pathseeker |
A small pilot cohort of 10 students with aspiration in the medical field will spend three weeks immersed in AI training, combining online AI-guided learning with in-person sessions in Santa Ana. Participants will be paid for their time by AyZar Outreach, and for at least one standout student, the program ends with a guaranteed internship.
Who It’s For
The target group is clear—high school seniors and community college students, especially those nearing graduation and looking for a real entry point into a career, not just another credential.
The bigger idea behind Syndara is simple, but urgent. The students who most need access to AI skills—and to career pathways—are often the least likely to get them. As technology reshapes hiring, that gap is only widening.
“Because if it works, the implications go beyond one cohort. It becomes a model for how access turns into capability—and how capability turns into real opportunity.” — Nicol R. Howard, PhD, Chapman University |
Syndara is an attempt to close it by design, not by chance, says Shirin Zarkesh, co-founder of AyZar Outreach.
GET INVOLVED
→ Apply as a Pathseeker: bit.ly/Syndara2026Launch
→ Sign Up as an Industry Advisor: ayzaroutreach.org/registration
→ Learn More About Syndara: ayzaroutreach.org/syndara
