MUSCAT - A growing number of Omani businesses are turning the messaging apps already on customers’ phones into fully fledged online stores, as artificial intelligence (AI) reshapes how goods are bought and sold across the Sultanate of Oman and the wider Gulf.

The shift is steering e-commerce away from standalone apps and websites towards conversational channels mainly WhatsApp where shoppers can browse, order, pay and receive an invoice without leaving the chat. Behind much of that change is a wave of locally built AI platforms wagering that the fastest route to digital sales runs through tools customers open every day.

Among them is Wiya, an Omani AI firm that has made the WhatsApp storefront its central product. Its founder and chief executive, Talal al Marhoon, argues that the case for conversational commerce in Oman is simple: customers are already there on WhatsApp.

“In Oman and the Gulf, WhatsApp is part of the daily purchasing journey,” Al Marhoon said. “Customers enquire, order and want to pay through it. I don’t believe in forcing someone to download a new app or navigate a complicated site when they can finish everything in a place they use every day.”

The problem the technology aims to solve, he said, is one many small and mid-sized firms share: enquiries scattered across WhatsApp, Instagram and company websites, slow replies and weak follow-up. The result is lost business. “Many organisations were losing custom not because of a weak product, but because of weak communication,” Al Marhoon said, noting that buyers tied to official working hours often lose sales to competitors who answer faster.

Wiya’s platform automates that customer service and folds payment and invoicing into the conversation. Al Marhoon shares the story of a village shopkeeper selling water and consumer goods who had been taking orders over WhatsApp but could not keep up, sometimes losing sales without realising it. After adopting the service, replies became instant, customers could order and pay within the chat, and invoices were sent automatically to the delivery agent. The shopkeeper reported sales exceeding RO 760 within three days and began running promotional campaigns drawn from his customer database.

“It shows how AI can give small owners a real chance to grow without a large team or complicated technology,” Al Marhoon said.

Laudably, Wiya recently secured a strategic investment from Omantel Ventures, a joint fund between Omantel and Future Fund Oman affiliated with the Oman Investment Authority. Al-Marhoon described the backing as a vote of confidence from major national institutions in the company’s vision.

A persistent hurdle for conversational commerce in the region has been language. Al Marhoon said AI handling of the Omani and Gulf dialects has “advanced a great deal,” particularly when models are trained and customised for a specific business, though local vocabulary tied to cultural context remains a challenge. Wiya does not rely on a general model alone, he said, instead tailoring its system to each organisation and sector.

Al Marhoon has experience of over 15 years in marketing, e-commerce and technology. He built this tool to help public and private institutions to foster their effectiveness, efficiency and productivity.

Customer data is treated with utmost discretion and confidentiality. “Data is highly secured with strict access control. We offer solutions to institutions to keep their customers’ data to be within their own systems. The future of AI rests not only on the power of the models, but on trust,” Al-Marhoon said.

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