CNME Editor Mark Forker sat down with Alfred Manasseh, COO & Co-Founder of Shaffra, to find out how the company is redefining AI-driven automation, the significance of its partnership with Saudi telecommunications giant STC – and his view on the rise of Agentic AI.
Shaffra has branded itself as a ‘deep tech’ company. However, can you please elaborate on what the company does and what your mission statement is as an organization?
Shaffra is redefining AI-driven automation by developing exclusive technology that not only enables AI Employees to process data but also understand intent and take action autonomously.
While many AI solutions rely solely on Large Language Models (LLMs) for text-based outputs, Shaffra’s AI Workforce operates on a more advanced model that allows AI to execute real-world tasks based on contextual understanding.
Through our AI Workforce Trainer, businesses can customize AI Employees to align with their industry-specific workflows, corporate culture, and communication styles.
Unlike traditional chatbots or automation tools, our AI Employees can understand business intent and determine the right actions to take, interact across multiple systems such as CRMs, ERPs and databases without requiring separate integrations, and independently handle business operations, from compliance management to customer engagement and sales follow-ups.
Our mission is to help make businesses more efficient by reducing operational costs up to 80%, minimizing errors by up to 95% and enhancing productivity by 10,000%.
Driven by rapid growth in the GCC, technology investments are set to reach $24.7 billion by 2030. By bridging the gap between AI intelligence and real-world execution, Shaffra is shaping the future of work with truly autonomous AI.
During LEAP 2025 in Riyadh, Shaffra announced a major partnership with Saudi telecoms behemoth STC. Can you please provide more information on what this AI-centered partnership will entail – and how it will help enterprises reduce operational costs?
Our partnership with Saudi Telecom (STC) is a game-changer to enterprise AI adoption in the region. This collaboration will integrate Shaffra’s AI Employees into STC’s digital transformation initiatives, offering automated business solutions that drive efficiency across multiple sectors.
This AI-centered partnership will include Intelligent Process Automation, a tool that reduces manual effort by helping employees handle data management, compliance, customer interactions, and administrative tasks.
AI models analyze business data in real time to enable faster and more accurate strategic decisions, while reducing costs by 80% and raising productivity. Employees will have Enterprise-Wide Accessibility via WhatsApp, email, corporate communication tools, and digital platforms ensuring seamless communication with their AI counterparts.
This partnership highlights the tangible and positive effect an AI powered workforce can have in the real world, positioning Shaffra and STC at the center of the region’s AI revolution.
Many analysts have suggested that 2025 will be the year of ‘Agentic AI’. How would you define Agentic AI, and can you explain how your AI workforce solutions can empower employees to make better and faster decisions?
Agentic AI refers to AI systems that operate independently, learning from interactions to make decisions and execute tasks without constant human supervision. Unlike traditional AI, Agentic AI is proactive, adaptive, and context-aware, making it a key enabler of business automation.
Shaffra’s AI Employees embody Agentic AI by analyzing data to anticipate business needs, making real-time decisions by managing workflows to ensure faster execution, streamlining business operations through clear communication with employees and reducing errors by 95% through proper data verification.
By integrating Agentic AI into the workforce, Shaffra is helping businesses operate more efficiently, minimize delays, and make smarter, data-driven decisions at scale.
How important was an event like LEAP for Shaffra, in terms of allowing you to demonstrate your portfolio of solutions and project your overall message as a company?
LEAP 2025 was significant for Shaffra as it gave us a global platform to showcase the power of AI-driven workforce solutions. At LEAP, we demonstrated how our AI Employees streamline business processes through Live AI Employee Integrations.
We also announced major partnerships with Saudi Telecom (STC) and Omantel to provide Agentic AI solutions to Saudi companies and support Oman’s telecom and enterprise sectors with AI-driven automation.
We were also able to highlight how businesses can almost eliminate operational errors and costs while rapidly increasing efficiency by adopting AI workforce solutions.
Participation at LEAP has reinforced Shaffra’s role as a market leader, attracting key industry stakeholders and solidifying our position as the go-to provider of AI workforce solutions.
Shaffra operates in a competitive marketplace, but what would you say ultimately differentiates you from your market rivals?
Shaffra is changing the face of the AI workforce by delivering fully integrated, independent AI Employees that go beyond traditional technology. We understand that penetration of GenAI is heavy in the Middle East, with 81% of employees having used it in the workplace over the past 12 months.
Our services stand out because we offer seamless AI workforce integration, where our AI employees work within existing business systems without disruptive overhauls. Through AI Workforce Trainer, customers get a personalized AI employee who operates according to their business model.
These AI employees are completely adaptable to business sizes from SMEs to multinationals, easily accessible through different enterprise tools and digital platforms, and offer tangible return on investment, increasing productivity by 60%, reducing errors to near zero, and decreasing costs by 80%.
At Shaffra, our focus is to provide a comprehensive AI workforce solution that integrates seamlessly into any industry, any workflow, and any business model.
