Checkers is expanding the capabilities of its Sixty60 AI shopping assistant, Pixie, with the launch of Smart Chat, adding conversational and multimodal AI features that bring it closer to rival Pick n Pay’s Penny.
The upgrade allows customers to interact with Pixie through text, voice and images. Users can upload product photos for identification, turn recipe images into shopping baskets and receive meal suggestions with products that can be added directly to their orders.
Pixie also uses contextual information such as time of day and local weather to personalise recommendations, including braai supplies on warm afternoons or comfort foods during colder weather.
The move marks a shift in the competitive AI landscape for South African grocery retailers, with Checkers and Pick n Pay now offering increasingly similar conversational capabilities.
Checkers retains a potential advantage through the data generated by its Xtra Savings loyalty ecosystem, which provides Pixie with extensive information on customer purchasing behaviour and preferences.
Smart Chat will initially roll out to Xtra Savings Plus subscribers before becoming available more widely, adding another layer of AI-driven personalisation to the Sixty60 shopping experience.
