40% of South Africans now use AI tools every week to help decide what to buy, where to buy it, or whether to buy it at all. Of those who do, 42% found a cheaper alternative and 35% switched brands or retailers. The numbers come from SpendTrend26, the joint Discovery Bank and Visa report covered by Daily Maverick in April 2026.
Discovery Bank CEO Hylton Kallner: “Rather than using that relief for additional discretionary spend, households are using rewards, budgeting tools and value-seeking strategies to stretch what they already have”.
bsmart doesn’t need to convince members a smarter shopping habit is coming. A large share are already doing it, even if they’d never call it “using AI.” It might just be a browser tab open on a comparison site, or a five-second question typed into a chatbot before adding something to a cart. What bsmart adds to that habit is simple: one card that stacks an extra reward on top of whatever else you’re already using to shop smart, so the saving doesn’t stop once you’ve found the cheaper option.
Comparing before buying gets you a Better Price
According to Visa’s 2026 Stay Secure study, reported by Bizcommunity, 77% of consumers in South Africa have used AI tools to help with shopping. 66% compared prices. 60% checked reviews or ratings. 52% looked for gift ideas. None of it needs a technical label. A quick chat with a price-comparison app. An AI summary of reviews before you leave the house.
South Africa’s biggest retailers are betting on it too
The shift shows up inside the loyalty programmes members already use. As TechCentral reported, Pick n Pay’s Penny assistant has been live in the asap! app since July 2026. Checkers’ Pixie has been used by 98% of Xtra Savings Plus subscribers. Woolworths is piloting My Woolies Chef with MyDifference loyalty members from September 2026. None of that replaces your bsmart card. Swipe alongside whichever loyalty programme you’re already using, and it adds its own reward on top.
Woolworths group data and AI officer Jose Rodrigues, quoted by BusinessTech: “Conversational AI allows customers to engage with Woolworths’ food content and digital shopping experience in a more intuitive way.”
Pick n Pay, Checkers and Woolworths are putting real money behind this, inside the programmes members already trust. That’s a genuine business bet by SA’s three largest grocery retailers, and it’s why the AI shopping assistant trend in South Africa is worth paying attention to.
Trust stops at the till, bsmart gets you over the line
Only 23% of South African members would trust AI to complete a checkout on their behalf. Most are comfortable using it to research, not to hand over the actual purchase. AI’s value right now sits in the research and comparison stage, not at the till.
AI can help you walk into a store better informed. It can flag a cheaper option or surface a helpful review before you buy. The decision and the payment still happen at the till. That’s where bsmart’s Better Price comes in: your bsmart card checks your basket and works out a saving for you, right there at the till.
Notice what you’re already doing
AI gives you better information before you leave the house. Your judgement still makes the call. Shopping smart with AI in South Africa means recognising a shift that’s already happened and using it on purpose, instead of stumbling into it by accident every time you’re standing in an aisle comparing two products.
bsmart’s role as a trusted companion hasn’t changed. For years, it’s made shopping simpler and more rewarding for members. One card works across the stores you already shop at, no matter what other loyalty cards are in your wallet. You don’t have to shop any differently. But no matter how you get to the till, bsmart makes sure it counts.
AI can help you decide what to buy and where. bsmart still brings you a Better Price.