Used-car retailer Weelee has launched a new generative Artificial Intelligence-powered (AI) search engine that allows consumers to search for pre-owned vehicles in each one of South Africa’s 11 official spoken languages.
With fewer than 1 in 10 people speaking English as their native tongue in the country, Weelee believes the innovative feature will allow it to gain a competitive edge over rivals such as WeBuyCars.
“A lot of passion and energy goes into finding your dream car and sometimes, your unique requirements can only be expressed in your mother tongue. Most car search engines are designed to only accept English terminology so, if you’re looking for a vura vura, lekker wiele, gusheshe or caracara, you’ll most likely to be met with ‘no results found’,” said Anton De Souza, CEO of Weelee.
“Weelee, a leader in omnichannel used-car buying and selling, has changed that with the launch of a generative AI-powered search engine that allows users to find their ideal car in any of South Africa’s 11 official languages.”
One small step for consumers, one giant leap for the industry
The new AI technology represents a “significant leap forward” in the way South Africans shop for cars as it removes the restrictions of traditional search filters.
In addition to its multilingual capability, the search engine also allows users to type as they would talk with a car salesman when searching for a vehicle online.
As such, buyers can now enter phrases such as “find me a reliable car for a student” and get results consisting of cost-effective but dependable cars.
Inputs such as “I’m looking for a sleek sedan under R200,000” or a “sporty, red convertible” will deliver accurate results, too.
De Souza said the intuitive tool has improved the overall efficiency of the car-buying process on the Weelee platform and completely changed how customers interact with the company.
“The majority of South Africans start their car buying journey online but are forced to conduct their research in English which is the first language of just 4.9 million people,” concludes the CEO.
“A search engine that adapts to your language preference makes buying a car a lot more enjoyable and accessible to a lot more people.”
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