ASKUL Launches ChatGPT Plugin to Search B2B Products by Chat
Japanese business supplies retailer Askul now lets customers search, compare and select ASKUL products inside ChatGPT, even when they lack exact product names.
SUMO· the number puzzle
Dialo· learn languages by speaking
ediviewer· read EDI files like documents
giftdetect· the right gift in minutesAskul announced on November 5 that its business-focused online store ASKUL now supports ChatGPT plugins. Customers can search for and select products through a conversation with ChatGPT instead of relying solely on the site's search interface.
ChatGPT plugins let users access apps from external services within a chat. Once users describe what they want to buy from ASKUL, ChatGPT can search for candidate products, compare them and help narrow down a choice. The feature is meant to work even when the user does not know a product's official name, or knows the purpose but not which item fits. To buy, users follow a link from the suggested products to the purchase page.
How to use it
Users search for and select "ASKUL" in ChatGPT's plugin section. The connection must be approved on first use only. After that, adding the mention "@ASKUL" to a message is enough to look up ASKUL products through the conversation.
Why Askul is doing this
According to Askul, in B2B purchasing the person who uses a product is often not the person who orders it. Buyers pick items based on abstract requests from people on the front line, and comparing several products can take considerable time.
The company says the plugin is an attempt to address problems that conventional search-style interfaces cannot fully handle, with the aim of making customers' purchasing work more efficient.
For corporate buyers, the move shows how conversational AI is becoming an entry point for procurement, where vague requests such as a need for a particular kind of supply can be turned into concrete product shortlists without knowing exact item names.
Apps worth a look
SUMO: the number puzzleTap the right tiles, add them up, hit the target. Easy to learn, hard to master. Free, for all ages.
Dialo: learn languages by speakingTalk to an AI conversation partner; every sentence comes back corrected and explained in your language. 9 languages, A1 to C2.
ediviewer: read EDI files like documentsOpen EDIFACT and X12 messages, see every segment explained, convert to JSON/XML, export PDF and Excel. Runs locally, no upload.
giftdetect: the right gift in minutesPick who it is for, the occasion and their personality. The search engine reads product descriptions from local shops and ranks what fits. Free, no sign-up.
More from this day
See all →
South Korea to Fully Lift Network Separation Rules for Banks
Elsevier Adds LG AI Research Vision Model to Reaxys Search
Korean AI startup Numz AI raises $ KRW 2bn, totaling 6bn won
