How To Create An AI-era Theme Park? — Learning From Musk And Zhang Yiming

 Recently, I‘ve been reading articles about Musk, Zhang Yiming, and Ren Zhengfei

The more I read, the more I feel that although these people work in seemingly “highbrow” technology and internet fields, the underlying logic of how they operate is actually the same as what we do in indoor playgrounds.

In the age of AI, everyone is anxious: Will my store be eliminated? Can my team keep up? Today, I’d like to borrow some of the star power of these industry leaders and share a few lessons I‘ve learned from them. I hope they inspire you.

 

 01. Begin with the end in mind: Think clearly about what your playground will look like three years from now

Musk keeps talking about colonizing Mars. Many people think he’s crazy. But he isn‘t just shouting nonsense. His conclusion is this: Earth’s resources are limited, and humanity must become a multi-planetary species. Then he works backwards: today, we need to crack rocket reusability; tomorrow, we need to lower launch costs.

In his early days, Zhang Yiming was in no rush to monetize. He poured all his resources into the recommendation algorithm. Why? Because he saw that the endgame was this: in an age of information explosion, whoever masters precise information distribution wins.

As playground operators, can we also try to begin with the end in mind?

Three years from now, where will your store stand in your local market? Will it be parents‘ first choice on weekends, or will it be crushed by competitors? When customers mention your store, what comes to mind first? New equipment? Great service? Low prices? A place kids can’t bear to leave?

Once ou‘ve clarified that endgame, work backwards: Should you set up your store manager training system today? Should you push your review rating from 4.8 to 4.9? Should you spend time studying local TikTok promotions?

 

At Pokiddo, that’s exactly what we do. We don‘t just think about “selling more equipment.” We think: ten years from now, we want Pokiddo to be synonymous with “reliable” in the global indoor playground industry. So today, we pour energy into refining our operations system, training partner store managers, and documenting lessons learned. These things don’t generate immediate revenue, but in the long run, they are our foundation.

 

 02. Embrace change: Build a team that is anti-fragile

Musk breaks down Tesla‘s production processes. Zhang Yiming champions “Context, not Control.” Both are essentially building teams that learn and adapt quickly. In such a team, decisions don’t rely solely on the boss. Everyone can act based on the situation on the ground.

Playgrounds desperately need this capability.

• A large tour group shows up during peak season. Can the front desk decide on the spot to open another checkout window?

• A piece of equipment breaks down. Can a safety officer immediately reassure parents and guide them to another area?

• A customer complains. Does the store manager have the authority to offer a voucher for a future visit?

  
  

If everything requires the owner‘s approval, then the owner becomes the store’s ceiling.

 

At Pokiddo, we place a strong emphasis on teamwork. Whether a store succeeds depends not on how capable the owner is, but on whether the store manager, safety officers, party hosts, and front-desk staff can each make sound judgments within their own areas of responsibility.

It‘s okay to make mistakes. Review, improve, and try again. This kind of team culture — one that isn’t afraid of mistakes — is what will prove most resilient in the age of AI.

 

 03. Technology + Human touch: AI is a tool; human connection is everything

Global reach of 60+ stores isn‘t locked in by contracts. It’s built on sincerity, integration, and standing shoulder to shoulder. Pokiddo — reliability you can see.

Musk is passionate about technology, but everything he does — electric cars, solar energy, neural interfaces — ultimately aims to solve fundamental human problems. Ren Zhengfei says, “Let those who hear the cannons call the fire.” He uses technology to empower frontline employees, not to control them.

No matter how advanced AI becomes, it won‘t bring a glass of water to a tired employee. It won’t kneel down and play with an anxious parent‘s child. It won’t tell a demoralized team, “It‘s okay, we’ll get through this together.”

As playground operators, we should use technological tools — AI to write event posts, analyze customer feedback, optimize scheduling. But we must never forget that the foundation of our business will always be people.

One of Pokiddo‘s core values is “sincere and reliable.” What does that mean? Be sincere with customers. Be reliable with partners.

AI can crunch numbers for you. But it can’t fulfill a promise for you. When a parent says, “You promised to give my child a little gift last time,” only your employee can smile and hand it over immediately.

So yes, learn the technology. But hold on to your humanity.

 

 04. From knowing to doing: How Pokiddo puts this into practice

No matter how many methodologies you read, they are useless if you don’t execute.

Our biggest lesson at Pokiddo over the years is this: translate principles into daily actions.

• Take “begin with the end in mind.” Every quarter, we ask our store managers to write a description of their “ideal store three years from now,” and then break that down into three concrete things they will do that quarter. “Increase repeat purchase rate” is too vague. Break it down to: “Add five parents on WeChat each week and send them a video of their child playing.”

• Take “embrace change.” We encourage each store to try one “small innovation” every month. Try a midweek fitness class this month. Try a group-buying campaign on Douyin next month. If it works, scale it. If it doesn‘t, treat it as a learning experience — no blame.

• Take “technology + human touch.” We equip our stores with AI analytics tools, but we also require store managers to spend at least two hours each week in one-on-one conversations with their team members — not about performance, but about “How are you feeling lately?” and “Is there anything I can help you with?”

 

These things seem small. But accumulated over time, they become the foundation of a team that can handle tough challenges.

 

 Final thoughts

Running a playground, at the end of the day, is about running a people business.

We at Pokiddo have always believed that the people who succeed share a certain drive: they are resilient, responsible, eager to learn, love action, are sincere and reliable, and can shoulder challenges together with their team. These qualities will never go out of style, no matter how much AI changes.

Running a playground is also about being true to yourself.

 

Pokiddo — Helping cross-industry indoor playground investors build with confidence and earn steadily.