Back in April, Checkers unveiled Pixie, an AI-powered assistant built to make the already-easy process of ordering and delivering food from Sixty60 even easier. You might’ve missed that one, though. See, the catch was that Pixie was reserved for a select few Xtra Savings Plus members. Now it’s coming to everyone.
Stuff’s own was one of those with access to Pixie since its inception in April and mostly found the feature a hindrance. Shoprite obviously feels differently. The company reckons 98% of members already use Pixie — though it doesn’t really mention whether those are one-time testers or loyal fans of the AI helper.
Where Is My Milk?
According to Shoprite Group chief strategy officer Neil Schreuder in a post on LinkedIn, Pixie is widely available to all Sixty60 users starting today. He describes it as “Tinder for groceries,” referring to Pixie’s swipe-like nature. Over time, Pixie will learn its users’ habits and quickly suggest groceries to them as they open the app.
“So far, Pixie’s number one user has added 730 products to their basket using Pixie’s swipe down to add to basket functionality, with a total value of R36,236,” wrote Shoprite back in April.
It’s certainly simple enough to use — simpler than just adding groceries to your virtual basket. Upon opening the Sixty60 app, users are greeted with a ‘Smart-Basket’ where they can swipe up to ignore a product, or swipe down to immediately add it to their cart. Swiping left and right will open up a carousel of suggested products.
Nobody at Stuff is arguing against Pixie’s efficiency. We’re even inclined to believe users are completing their shopping more quickly than they did previously. But you’re also giving up autonomy, allowing an AI-powered algorithm to hand you fresh ideas. Users can, of course, simply push past Pixie to get to the virtual shelves. But it’s an extra, frankly annoying, step that Checkers is banking on you not fighting.
