OLX Launches Agentic AI Products While South African Firms Grapple With Legacy System Roadblocks
As OLX unveils AI-powered property and car sales tools in Lisbon, South African businesses face a stark warning: modernize your legacy systems first, or watch your AI investments crumble.
Syntheda's AI technology correspondent covering Africa's digital transformation across 54 countries. Specializes in fintech innovation, startup ecosystems, and digital infrastructure policy from Lagos to Nairobi to Cape Town. Writes in a conversational explainer style that makes complex technology accessible.
OLX Group has rolled out two agentic AI products designed to revolutionize how people search for property and buy cars across its European and South African markets, positioning the classifieds giant at the forefront of AI-driven commerce. But the launch comes with a cautionary tale for South African businesses: your shiny new AI tools won't deliver unless you fix the creaking infrastructure underneath.
The company unveiled its AI-powered innovations at CLAIM AI, an invite-only conference for marketplace innovators held in Lisbon this week. These aren't simple chatbots—agentic AI systems can take actions on behalf of users, handling complex multi-step processes like scheduling property viewings or negotiating car prices. For OLX, which operates some of the largest classified platforms in emerging markets, the move signals a major bet on AI transforming vertical transactions in categories where trust and complexity have traditionally slowed digital adoption.
The Infrastructure Reality Check
While OLX pushes forward with cutting-edge AI, Accelera Digital Group is sounding the alarm about South Africa's readiness for this technology wave. According to Tech Central, the consultancy warns that "legacy systems and fragmented data threaten South Africa's ambitions to scale agentic AI successfully." The message is blunt: without modernizing core infrastructure, AI projects will fail regardless of how much capital companies pour into them.
This isn't just theoretical hand-wringing. South African enterprises have spent decades building complex IT environments—often a patchwork of on-premise systems, outdated databases, and siloed data repositories that don't talk to each other. Agentic AI requires clean, accessible data flowing through modern architectures. Feed it fragmented information from legacy systems, and you'll get unreliable outputs that erode user trust faster than you can say "digital transformation."
The timing of this warning matters. As global tech giants like Nvidia continue posting stellar results—the chipmaker delivered another strong quarter, though investors have grown accustomed to the company's consistent performance—the AI infrastructure buildout is accelerating worldwide. South African companies risk falling behind if they can't get their foundational systems in order.
Support Strategies and Leadership Shifts
Some companies are taking pragmatic steps to bridge the gap. KleanNara recently partnered with Rimini Street to support its SAP ECC 6 and Oracle Database systems, according to ITWeb. Rimini Street, which bills itself as "the Software Support and Agentic AI ERP Company," represents a middle path: maintaining legacy systems while gradually introducing AI capabilities. This approach acknowledges that rip-and-replace strategies aren't feasible for many enterprises, especially in cost-conscious markets like South Africa.
The strategy reflects a broader reality—modernization takes time and money, two resources that aren't infinite. Third-party support providers like Rimini Street allow companies to extend the life of existing systems while freeing up budget for strategic AI investments. It's not glamorous, but it's practical.
Meanwhile, South Africa's tech sector continues experiencing leadership turbulence. Dennis Venter resigned as co-CEO of iOCO after just one year, leaving the JSE-listed technology services group "to pursue other business interests," ITWeb reported. The departure, effective immediately, adds another data point to the ongoing reshuffling in South Africa's enterprise tech landscape as companies navigate the transition from traditional IT services to AI-enabled offerings.
The Path Forward
OLX's agentic AI launch demonstrates what's possible when companies build on solid digital foundations. The classifieds platform has spent years digitizing transactions, building user databases, and creating the data infrastructure that makes sophisticated AI applications viable. South African businesses looking to compete in an AI-driven economy need to make similar investments—but they need to start with the basics.
The gap between AI ambition and infrastructure reality is widening. Companies that address legacy system debt now will be positioned to deploy agentic AI at scale. Those that skip the foundation work and jump straight to AI pilots will likely join the growing list of failed digital transformation projects. In South Africa's competitive market, that could mean the difference between leading the next wave of innovation and watching from the sidelines.