Businesses are under ever-increasing pressure to be immediately available to current and prospective customers. An unanswered enquiry can become a missed opportunity in moments.

Alistair Sim, a business owner from Gordon’s Bay, set out to solve exactly that problem by creating Amafundi, an artificial intelligence customer interaction assistant. His goal was not to build technology for boardrooms and big corporate budgets, but to give local businesses a practical way to respond faster, capture enquiries and support their teams without adding complexity.

Sim holds a BCom Informatics degree and has worked in the IT field since the turn of the century, with experience across software development, systems analysis, business process improvement, consulting and technology leadership.

His work has increasingly focused on practical ways to use technology to solve business problems, which led to the development of Amafundi.

For many businesses, the challenge is that customers expect answers quickly, even after hours.

“FAQ is no longer enough, contact forms often feel outdated and no-one wants to scroll through a website,” Sim says. “Even adding WhatsApp to a website can create the expectation of an instant answer.”

Amafundi is an AI-powered assistant that lives on a company’s website and answers customer questions using that company’s own knowledge base. It helps visitors get clear answers quickly, captures useful enquiry details and gives the team the context they need to continue the conversation.

For example, a customer asking about services, pricing, availability or opening hours can get an immediate answer, while enquiries that need human attention can be captured and passed on to the business.

While many people worry about AI replacing jobs, Sim says Amafundi was built with a different purpose in mind. “The aim is not to replace people,” he says. “It is there to help with time-consuming, repetitive tasks so businesses can respond faster and more consistently. When businesses handle more enquiries well, they are in a better position to grow.”

Amafundi is now available to local businesses.

• To learn more, or to interact with the assistant, go to amafundi.co.za , or scan the QR code with your phone.