How AI-powered keyboard technology can power the grand vision of Super Apps?

In today’s increasingly digital, hyper-connected world, Super Apps have become quite the buzzword, taking countries across South East Asia by storm. Indian multinational conglomerate Tata Group recently announced its plans to unveil its Super App early next year which will essentially be a one-stop portal for users to avail multiple services and products across Tata’s portfolio of companies under one roof. Several other business giants including Paytm, PhonePe, and Reliance Jio have already made huge strides with their own Super Apps, catering to millions of digital consumers across verticals pan-India.

Despite formidable aspirations, Indian Super App players are yet to create the ‘Super App of Choice’ for India. This is because a large chunk of players developing Super Apps does not take cognisance of the behavioural traits and preferences of new-age digital users. This begs the question - despite a great user base and a wide range of services, why are Super Apps not being able to engage audiences in real terms?

Understanding the evolving needs of digital users

The Super App phenomenon is fuelled mainly by two factors that are rapidly transforming the smartphone landscape. On the one hand, digital users are driving the demand for seamless consumption of services across smartphone usage. To a smartphone user, fast, secure and seamless access to all major services - be it banking, travel-booking, shopping and much more, is at the core of a great smartphone experience.

Secondly, with the increasing appetite of businesses to diversify into new verticals and deepen their wallet shares, a Super App is the logical next step to consolidate all of their services under one platform; thereby driving strong brand loyalty and successful payments and rewards programmes.

Case in point - WeChat - the Super app that has gained massive popularity and adoption in China. For a WeChat user, it is intuitive to set up a date with a friend via instant messaging while accessing services as diverse as travel booking, paying for taxis and making reservations at a restaurant all at the same time via the same platform.

In line with the value proposition of a Super App to offer seamless access to frequently used products and services under one platform, it is imperative that the Super App rides on a vehicle that is high frequency and frictionless in nature.

High frequency, least friction

Most Super App players bundle services such as e-commerce, travel booking, digital payments, lending & insurance and OTT/Telecom services on the same platform. However, a major challenge in the success of a Super App lies in the fact that opening an app isn’t the most intuitive and is only initiated by a “need-based” trigger. A Super app can achieve its true potential and intended usage only if it is made available to the users where they spend most of their time across smartphone usage.

A common utility tool - the smartphone keyboard fits this mandate perfectly. Research suggests that a typical smartphone user interacts with their smartphone roughly 350 times a day, averaging close to 100 sessions daily on the keyboard and amounting to 30 minutes of time spent on the keyboard. The keyboard being the common input mechanism across smartphone usage and all apps are by its very nature accessed on a high-frequency basis with virtually non-existent friction.

India’s leading keyboard-tech players with AI-powered highly intuitive and hyper-customisable keyboard designs are already helping businesses realise the true potential of the smartphone keyboard. The engagement, monetization and new user acquisition potential unlocked by placing the services of a Super App right on the smartphone keyboard is immense. Global players including leading banks and telecom operators have started taking notice of the humble keyboard.

Global enterprises are already leveraging the power of the smartphone keyboard

Banks such as Standard Chartered, HSBC and many others are already putting the power of banking at the user’s fingertips via a customised banking keyboard that facilitates seamless banking across all apps - including social messaging. Extending this vision from a banking app to a Super App, the smartphone keyboard is the perfect medium to position all the services bundled within a Super App at the right time to the right user.

AI-led keyboard tech players help banks, fintechs, telecom operators, etc to use the power of keyboard technology to their advantage via its customised keyboard solutions that make the services available on the keyboard. Our highly intuitive and modular keyboard design can be adapted to the needs and preferences of every single smartphone user, thus making sure that the right service is available to the right user at the right time.

However, it is a common misconception that keyboards are only about easy access. The truth is that the keyboard has the potential to revolutionise the entire smartphone experience.

Providing much more than just easy access

Today’s AI-powered smartphone keyboards do much more than just providing easy access to digital services. Powered by proprietary on-device intent detection technology, they provide unparalleled opportunities for businesses to understand their users better and make intelligent and contextual recommendations using data analytics and machine learning capabilities.

The ease of API integration with the keyboard resulting in a highly scalable and modular design is another reason why such keyboards are the perfect choice for Super apps.

Furthermore, keyboards with vernacular language capabilities and engaging rich media content can form the right kind of user stickiness for a Super app. Our data shows that users typically spend 2X more time on the keyboards that offer rich conversational content including thousands of stickers, GIFs and unique Emojis called versus a normal keyboard sans rich media content.

The Super App revolution is here to stay with user experience being the key driver. And only the one that will deliver a truly seamless experience, harness the data analytics capabilities for targeted and relevant positioning of services and exploit the power of AI-centric keyboard technology will win this race.

Author: Disha Shah, Vice President Business, Bobble AI