Checkers has added conversational abilities to Pixie, the Sixty60 AI shopping assistant, closing the clearest gap between it and Penny, the rival Pick n Pay switched on in July. When Pick n Pay launched Penny, the two assistants were built on opposite philosophies. Pixie, built in-house by ShopriteX on Xtra Savings data, started from replenishment – predictive reordering and a swipe-based Smart Basket rather than open dialogue. Pick n Pay omnichannel executive Enrico Ferigolli described the split to TechCentral as deliberate, predicting that “over time, both will do both”. Here Shoprite’s hand is strong: Pixie learns from Xtra Savings, the country’s largest grocery loyalty base.