Naspers-owned Prosus has deployed 37 000 artificial intelligence (AI) agents.
In a recent letter to shareholders, CEO Fabricio Bloisi writes: “With 37 000 AI agents already deployed across our ecosystem, we're not just talking about the future of AI – we're living it every day.”
The company says this represents a milestone in its strategy to build what it describes as an “innovative e-commerce ecosystem”, with AI agents already automating complex workflows and transforming operations across its global portfolio of two billion customers.
Its tech ambition was encapsulated in parent company Naspers’s statement in June, upon releasing results for the year to end-March 2025, that it is increasing its investment in AI, describing it as an “indispensable tool” that will underpin future growth across its platforms.
At the time, Bloisi stated: “This was a year of growth, innovation, disciplined execution and strategic milestones for Naspers.”
Innovation, he said, “is at the heart of our strategy”.
Digital acceleration
Although Bloisi’s communication focused on international operations, Naspers has indicated the digital platform sector has the potential to inject R91.4 billion into South Africa’s economy by 2035.
However, this achievement can only be reached through “accelerating digitalisation of the economy through collective action between business, government, civil society and other digital platform ecosystem players”.
Naspers has said it is “embarking on a journey to ensure we are an AI-first company, with innovation underpinning all facets of our business to enhance operations and customer experience, empower people and enrich communities, while improving the daily lives of billions of people”.
The JSE- and A2X-listed company notes the use of AI is already improving operational efficiency across its marketplace businesses, while also laying the foundation for longer-term strategic gains. In the year to March 2025, it invested $7.8 billion in AI-native start-ups and ecosystem expansion, as it stated its intention to lead in this space.
The group, which owns several well-known South African platforms – including Takealot Group, Autotrader, Property24 and PayU – is using AI to streamline processes, personalise customer experiences and drive innovation across its portfolio.
Naspers holds a more than 55% stake in Prosus, its international arm, which in turn owns a 24% shareholding in Chinese tech giant Tencent.
Robots at work
Prosus global AI head Euro Beinat said at the end of last year that traditional AI assistants are good at offering suggestions, but AI agents go a step further by completing work autonomously. “This is a game-changer for operational efficiency. These agents are designed to fulfil specific jobs-to-be-done, automating complex workflows seamlessly.”
Beinat said the company was targeting 30 000 AI agents by the end of 2025. Prosus launched its agent-building tools in March 2024.
He provided three concrete examples of agents that are “already transforming workflows at Prosus”:
Restaurant account executive agent: Used daily by over 200 associates at iFood, this senior agent automates restaurant performance reporting, helping account managers prepare for meetings with restaurant partners. It performs the manual work equivalent to 40 full-time employees, freeing teams to focus on what matters most.
Data analyst agent: An intermediate agent enabling any employee to query data in natural language − no technical expertise required. Thousands of associates rely on this agent, as do other AI agents that need access to data insights.
Newsletter wizard agent: A junior agent Beinat personally uses to curate AI industry updates every weekend. While it only serves him, it exemplifies the democratisation of automation – every employee can create tools personalised to their needs.
Prosus has also entered a three-year agreement with Amazon Web Services (AWS) to scale AI applications across its technology ecosystems in Latin America, Europe and India. The deal, the value of which was not disclosed, will see AWS commit engineering resources to co-develop products with Prosus and provide portfolio-wide access and support to rapidly deploy use cases.
First things first
In his February letter to shareholders, Bloisi said his focus is 100% on the fundamentals, which involves driving efficiency, growth, profitability and innovation across what the company already owns.
As a result, he says he doesn’t have any plans for any major merger and acquisition deals. “Instead, you can expect us to continue selling non-strategic and underperforming assets, with more than $2 billion in sales expected this fiscal year.”
Prosus will host events this year to showcase its innovation, with the first scheduled for this month in Lisbon, followed by one in Amsterdam.
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