Suburban
Peter Tanyanyiwa Suburban Reporter
ZIMBABWE keeps stepping into a global digitalised world with the private sector showing its commitment through various innovations aimed at boosting the academia, big corporations, small and medium enterprises and other forms of economic activity.
Local firm Zimhost recently launched one such innovation – the Oyos online Shopping and the OyosBot WhatsApp platform in Harare.
Oyosbot is an (artificial intelligence) AI-powered chatbot which helps businesses automate customer service and sales conversations.
It uses natural language processing and machine learning to understand customer queries and provide personalised responses. Oyosbot can be used to answer customer questions, provide product recommendations and help customers complete purchases.
Speaking at the launch, Zimhost Oyos project managing director Mr Pearson Pfavayi said Government supports a digitalised economy as part of its efforts to create an upper middle-income economy.
“This Oyos platform is there to help with technology, helping students, businesses to automate things. With the Government’s support we can transform our economy. In regard to the education system, it is not distracting the education system but we are actually enhancing it by offering an add on, helping them use the chat bot to do their research such as their essays, dissertations, homework, project proposals and other research,” said Mr Pfavayi.
He said that the chat bot had vast potential in growing small and medium enterprises (SMEs) through creating online stores and providing customers with sales and services through conversations.
“The platform has a vast potential of transforming small and medium enterprises. Zimbabwe is a place with SMEs mainly and they have been trading informally. With this new system, paying will be done online and payments are being configured through banks where they are monitored and controlled. SMEs will grow big,” he said.
Oyos communications manager Mr Charles Sande added that the OyosBot will help transform the way learners and businesses conduct their activities.
“The platform is going to be effective like in the business spheres, five hours of work has been reduced to half the time you would take with various resolutions. These innovations will also help students with their lessons. Generally, the Oyosbot is about cutting down the work for human beings,” said Mr Sande.
