# 232: AI Agents for Manufacturing 101 Featuring Composabl CEO & Co-Founder Kence Anderson

- Show: [Manufacturing Happy Hour](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/manufacturing-happy-hour)
- Published: 2025-04-22
- Length: 53m
- Page: https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/manufacturing-happy-hour/2025-04-22-232-ai-agents-for-manufacturing-101-featuring-composabl-ceo-co-founder-kence-and
- Listen: http://manufacturinghappyhour.com

## Summary

Kence Anderson, CEO and co-founder of Composabl, explains that AI agents in manufacturing must combine perception with action to drive operational change, moving beyond traditional machine learning which focuses on defect detection. He illustrates this with the example of an extruder making Cheetos, where agents use simulations to practice and capture the tacit expertise of retiring operators regarding unmeasurable variables like corn moisture. Anderson advises manufacturers to identify high-value skills in danger of extinction and build a platform-based system to codify this knowledge before it is lost.

## Chapters

- [0:00](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/manufacturing-happy-hour/2025-04-22-232-ai-agents-for-manufacturing-101-featuring-composabl-ceo-co-founder-kence-and#t=0) Introduction and AI Agent Definition
- [10:15](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/manufacturing-happy-hour/2025-04-22-232-ai-agents-for-manufacturing-101-featuring-composabl-ceo-co-founder-kence-and#t=615) Perception vs. Action in Manufacturing
- [12:59](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/manufacturing-happy-hour/2025-04-22-232-ai-agents-for-manufacturing-101-featuring-composabl-ceo-co-founder-kence-and#t=779) Anderson's Career and Platform Strategy
- [23:31](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/manufacturing-happy-hour/2025-04-22-232-ai-agents-for-manufacturing-101-featuring-composabl-ceo-co-founder-kence-and#t=1411) Capturing Tacit Expertise and Data
- [27:44](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/manufacturing-happy-hour/2025-04-22-232-ai-agents-for-manufacturing-101-featuring-composabl-ceo-co-founder-kence-and#t=1664) The Cheeto Extruder Case Study
- [36:19](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/manufacturing-happy-hour/2025-04-22-232-ai-agents-for-manufacturing-101-featuring-composabl-ceo-co-founder-kence-and#t=2179) Agent Architecture and Deployment
- [39:21](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/manufacturing-happy-hour/2025-04-22-232-ai-agents-for-manufacturing-101-featuring-composabl-ceo-co-founder-kence-and#t=2361) Teaching Operators and Implementation Steps

## Topics

- [AI & machine learning](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/ai-and-machine-learning)
- [Sourcing & supply chain](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/sourcing-and-supply-chain)

## Most relevant to

early-stage companies

## Mentioned

- Composabl (company)
- Bonsai (company)
- Microsoft (company)
- AlphaGo (product)
- Skillwork (company)

## Related episodes from other shows

- [AI Agents and Humans: The Future of Factory Teams w/ Karan Talati](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-manufacturing-executive/2025-09-09-ai-agents-and-humans-the-future-of-factory-teams-w-karan-talati) (The Manufacturing Executive)
- [AI in Manufacturing: Fusing Human Knowledge and IIoT Data w/ Christopher Nguyen](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-manufacturing-executive/2023-03-28-ai-in-manufacturing-fusing-human-knowledge-and-iiot-data-w-christopher-nguyen) (The Manufacturing Executive)
- [Industrial DataOps and Rise of AI Agents w/ Aron Semle](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-manufacturing-executive/2025-07-01-industrial-dataops-and-rise-of-ai-agents-w-aron-semle) (The Manufacturing Executive)
- [AI, Digital Transformation, and Innovations with Arch Systems Cofounder and CEO, Andrew Scheuermann](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/ems-c-level/2024-11-14-ai-digital-transformation-and-innovations-with-arch-systems-cofounder-and-ceo-an) (EMS@C-LEVEL)
- [The Real Threat to Tribal Knowledge Isn't Just Retirement w/ Jamie Marzilli](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-manufacturing-executive/2026-06-30-the-real-threat-to-tribal-knowledge-isnt-just-retirement-w-jamie-marzilli) (The Manufacturing Executive)

## Citing this page

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