Pick n Pay asap! has become the first grocery delivery platform in South Africa to launch Penny, the country’s first fully integrated AI-powered grocery shopping companion, introducing a new conversational shopping experience.
Instead of searching for products manually, customers can simply ask Penny what they need using voice – in any language, text or photos, and she’ll instantly build their basket.
The new feature is available in the latest version of the Pick n Pay asap! app and will be rolled out to all customers in July, commencing from 6 July 2026.
Enrico Ferigolli, Retail Executive: Omnichannel at Pick n Pay, says that this is not just another app feature; it represents a fundamental shift in how people can shop for groceries.
“On-demand delivery changed how people shop. AI is now changing how they order. We’re moving from search-and-scroll shopping to conversation-led shopping that makes buying groceries faster, smarter and far more intuitive. For years, the focus has been on faster delivery. The next disruption is removing the effort from shopping itself. Consumers no longer just want speed – they want shopping apps to think for them,” says Ferigolli.
Instead of navigating categories and product lists, customers can now simply tell Penny what they need and let AI do the work
Powered by Google’s Gemini AI models, Penny uses multimodal AI to let customers shop however feels most natural, be it by voice, text and images.
“We are now in the era of AI assistants, where AI is moving beyond simply answering questions to helping people get things done,” says Kabelo Makwane, Country Director for Google South Africa.
“The power of multimodal AI is that people don’t have to adapt to technology – the technology adapts to them. Whether someone speaks, types or shares a photo, AI understands their intent. When these capabilities are built into products people already know and trust, they solve real everyday problems in a simple, intuitive way,” says Makwane.
Ferigolli says that Penny has been built around real South African shopping behaviour. Penny helps customers with everything from finding products, weekly grocery shops and top-up missions to meal planning, recipe inspiration and entertaining.
“Customers no longer need to search through various categories or know exact product names; they can just ask for it, in their own words”, he says.
Using Penny, customers can:
- Shop conversationally in multiple languages
- Dictate their shopping list using voice notes
- Upload photos of handwritten shopping lists or a list of ingredients from a recipe
- Snap products they want to order
- Photograph ingredients already in their fridge and ask for meal ideas
- Ask for recipes and instantly add ingredients to their basket
- Suggest ingredient substitutions
- Help plan meals, budget, or provide entertaining meal and drinks ideas
Penny also makes repeat shopping effortless, allowing customers to reload their usual weekly basket or reorder a previous shop with a simple request.
For every request, Penny recommends products based on customers’ preferences, including quantity, brand and price. Integrated with Smart Shopper, it can also personalise recommendations based on previous purchases and shopping habits.
“By understanding what customers are cooking, buying and planning, Penny becomes more than a shopping app – it becomes a genuine shopping companion that makes grocery shopping dramatically faster and simpler,” says Ferigolli.
The launch comes as Pick n Pay Online continues to gain momentum. “Last year we replatformed asap! across both the front and back end, significantly accelerating our speed of development. That gives us the ability to bring new AI-powered innovations to customers much faster, with more enhancements rolling out over the coming months.
“This is only the beginning of what AI can unlock for everyday grocery shopping, and Penny is the first step in that journey,” concludes Ferigolli.
