Academy

First cohort · April 2027

Join the shortlist

FIRST COHORT · APRIL 2027 · BERLIN OR LIVE ONLINE

Build, test and ship software with coding agents.

A full-time, live program for people who already write code. You learn to run coding agents the way an engineer runs a team: clear specs, small tasks, tests, review, releases. Fifteen seats, taught by Alexey Grigorev.

15 SEATS · 1 INSTRUCTOR · NONE OFFERED YET

Taught live by Alexey Grigorev, founder of DataTalks.Club and creator of the free Zoomcamps (85,000+ GitHub stars across the course repositories).

START
April 2027
FORMAT
Full-time, live, 12 to 16 weeks
WHERE
Berlin (Prenzlauer Berg) or live online
LANGUAGE
English
SEATS
15
TUITION
Bildungsgutschein planned (approval pending) or self-pay

01 / WHAT YOU WILL BE ABLE TO DO

By the end you can run a software project with agents, and answer for the result.

  1. 01Turn a product idea into a spec and a set of small tasks.
  2. 02Build a full-stack feature across the interface, the API and the database.
  3. 03Work in an existing codebase: debug it and review agent-generated changes.
  4. 04Automate tests and releases with CI/CD.
  5. 05Deploy your application and use logs and metrics to investigate failures.
  6. 06Connect agents to tools through MCP and build reusable workflows for implementation and code review.
  7. 07Set up and configure an agentic software factory.

02 / THE FINAL PROJECT

You finish with something real.

You ship a working web application for a real user task. People try it, you improve it from their feedback, and you show how you tested and released each change.

Alexey Grigorev

03 / WHO TEACHES

One instructor. Every session, every project review.

I'm Alexey Grigorev. I founded DataTalks.Club and created its free Zoomcamps: Data Engineering, Machine Learning, MLOps, LLM and AI Dev Tools. Their course repositories have more than 85,000 stars on GitHub. I wrote Machine Learning Bookcamp, and I teach paid cohort courses on both of these topics on Maven.

This program is different from the Zoomcamps in one way that matters: it is small. I teach every day myself and I look at every participant's project every week. There are no teaching assistants and no pre-recorded lectures in place of a class.

04 / WHO IT IS FOR

This is for you if

  • You write code today (Python, JavaScript, TypeScript or similar) and have used AI tools only a little.
  • You can study full-time, Monday to Friday, for the whole program.
  • You can follow technical teaching and work with others in English.
  • You want your next job to be in software or AI engineering, including if you are between jobs right now.

This is not for you if

  • You have never programmed. Start with the free Zoomcamps and come back.
  • You need an evenings-only course.
  • You want a certificate without building anything.

05 / WHAT WE COVER

Sixteen modules, one project that grows every week.

This is the draft syllabus. The shortlist's survey answers shape the final version.

Weeks 1–4Foundations
  1. 01AI development tools: overview and setup.You produce: a working environment and your first agent-made commit.
  2. 02Working in a session and in an existing codebase.You produce: a verified pull request in a repository you didn't write.
  3. 03From idea to spec, backlog and small tasks.You produce: a product brief and a groomed backlog for your own product.
  4. 04Full-stack feature I: interface and API contract.You produce: a working interface on mocks and an OpenAPI specification.
Weeks 5–8Build and verify
  1. 05Full-stack feature II: backend and database.You produce: the main user task working end to end, with backend tests.
  2. 06Testing, verification and debugging.You produce: a test suite, and a seeded bug reproduced, fixed and covered.
  3. 07Reviewing agent-generated changes.You produce: a review record, a reviewer workflow and two automatic checks.
  4. 08Containers, CI/CD and deployment.You produce: your first version deployed through CI (midterm).
Weeks 9–12Operate and automate
  1. 09Permissions, sandboxing and safe operation.You produce: a threat sketch and guardrails for your product.
  2. 10Environments, logs, metrics and an on-call agent.You produce: dashboards, one alert, and a failure investigated from telemetry.
  3. 11Reusable workflows: skills, subagents and hooks.You produce: packaged implementation and code-review workflows.
  4. 12Connecting agents to tools through MCP.You produce: your product's tools exposed through MCP and used by the agent.
Weeks 13–16Factory and capstone
  1. 13Agent teams, loops and parallel work.You produce: a backlog batch worked through by an agent team, with QA verdicts.
  2. 14The agentic software factory.You produce: a configured factory on your product and an operating guide.
  3. 15Capstone: users, feedback, improvement.You produce: an improved product released through the pipeline.
  4. 16Capstone: release, evidence and defence.You produce: the product, a launch report and a technical defence.

06 / FUNDING

A Bildungsgutschein pays for a seat. It doesn't get you one.

I'm applying for approval so that the Agentur für Arbeit can cover the tuition with a Bildungsgutschein. That approval is still pending, and the Agentur decides on each person's voucher individually. Nobody can promise you funding today, and I won't.

Funding and admission are two separate decisions. The Agentur decides whether it pays. I decide who is in the cohort. You need both.

If you pay yourself, the full program will cost €9,000 to €10,000.

How the Bildungsgutschein works (arbeitsagentur.de)

07 / HOW YOU GET IN

Why 15 seats

I teach this cohort myself and review every project. I can do that properly for about 15 people, not for more. In Berlin the room doesn't fit more either. If more people qualify than there are seats, there is a waitlist and a later cohort. I won't add seats.

  1. 01

    Join the shortlist. Leave your email on this page. It takes ten seconds and commits you to nothing.

  2. 02

    Apply first. When applications open, the shortlist gets them before anyone else.

  3. 03

    Short task and a conversation. A small practical exercise and a 20-minute call, so we both know the level fits.

  4. 04

    Seats are offered in rounds. Everyone who applies gets an answer.

08 / QUESTIONS

Questions

Is this program confirmed?

It is planned for April 2027. Two tracks are on the table, agentic engineering and AI engineering, and I'll run the one with more serious interest first. Joining a shortlist is how you vote.

What do I get for joining the shortlist?

You get the application before it opens publicly, and updates on dates, format and funding approval. Nothing else, and no obligation.

What do I need to know before I start?

You can write basic code in Python, JavaScript, TypeScript or a similar language, use the command line and Git, read and explain a short function, and run a simple test. You don't need any experience with coding agents.

Will the Agentur für Arbeit pay for it?

That is the plan. I'm applying for the approval that makes Bildungsgutschein funding possible, and it has not been granted yet. Even after approval, the Agentur decides each person's case. Talk to your adviser early.

What does it cost if I pay myself?

€9,000 to €10,000 for the full program.

Is it online or in Berlin?

Not decided yet. It will be either live online from Germany or in person in Berlin, in Prenzlauer Berg near S+U Schönhauser Allee. The survey after you join asks which one you could attend.

What is the schedule?

Full-time: Monday to Friday, 09:00 to 16:00 Berlin time, live, for 12 to 16 weeks. The exact length is fixed together with the approval. I'm also considering a part-time version; tell me in the survey if you need one.

Do I have to live in Germany?

The program is built for people in Germany, and a Bildungsgutschein is only available there.

How do you choose who gets a seat?

By the same published criteria for everyone: programming experience that fits the track, availability for the full schedule, English, a concrete goal, and the practical task. Your employment or benefit status is not a criterion.

What happens to my email?

I use it only to write to you about this program and its application. You can ask me to delete it at any time. Details are in the privacy notice.

09 / JOIN THE SHORTLIST

Fifteen seats. The shortlist hears first.

Leave your email and I'll write to you before applications open.

15 SEATS · 1 INSTRUCTOR · NONE OFFERED YET

15 seats · April 2027