I do think there is something quite exciting happening here for the field of research and for customer and competitor insights. I’m talking about Open AI’s new model which is for now ONLY for Pro users ($200 pm) and apparently is limited to 100 of these Deep Research Tasks per month

https://openai.com/index/introducing-deep-research/

I’m running as many of these as I can on local brands that I’m familiar with and most importantly can share with the relevant CEOs’ and Marketing Heads to validate if they think these are useful and accurate.

Now IF these reports can be trusted and validated, here is an estimate of one report sample and the estimates of doing this the “old way”

Total Estimated Time: (No AI)

40-55 hours (Equivalent to 5-7 full workdays for a medium-level analyst)

Key Bottlenecks Without AI: ✅ Manually compiling social media engagement metrics – AI tools can extract and analyze this data in minutes. ✅ Competitive benchmarking & market research – Pre-AI, analysts had to manually read multiple reports and compare data points. ✅ Industry trend identification – AI can scan thousands of articles quickly, whereas an analyst would need extensive time for research. ✅ Writing & Formatting – AI accelerates structuring and summarization, reducing drafting time by 50%+.

With AI assistance, these kinds of reports could be generated in 3-5 hours instead of 40-55 hours, showcasing 80-90% time savings.

Below is a Chat GPT summary on the differences between the Open AI Deep Research report and the same prompt on DeepSeek. As per all the experts (for now) Open AI Deep Research is definitely superior and provides significantly more detail and insights.. But hey remember this is the $200 per month version and DeepSeek is still free!

Key Differences:

  1. Technical Depth: The DeepSeek report focuses more on Google PageSpeed scores, structured SEO issues, and technical accessibility. The OpenAI report is broader, discussing UX, performance, and customer perception.
  2. Competitor Selection: DeepSeek includes grocery e-commerce competitors (Checkers Sixty60, Woolworths), while OpenAI focuses on general e-commerce players like Temu and Bobshop.
  3. Checkout & Cart Abandonment: Both reports identify cart abandonment issues, but DeepSeek attributes it to unexpected shipping costs, while OpenAI also links it to slow site speed.
  4. Loyalty & Customer Service: DeepSeek highlights Takealot’s lack of a loyalty program more prominently, whereas OpenAI mentions potential for a “Takealot Plus” membership.

Final Verdict:

  • OpenAI Deep Research: More holistic—combines UX, customer sentiment, competitor analysis, and strategic recommendations.
  • DeepSeek: More technical—focuses on website performance, SEO, and structured fixes.

Both reports agree on Takealot’s slow website, weak customer service, and increasing competition from Amazon and local players.

However, DeepSeek is more practical for developers optimizing the site, while OpenAI’s report is more useful for business and strategy teams.

To see both reports have a look at the attachments below:

📊 Takealot Deep Research Report📊 Takealot Deep Research Report.pdf261 KBdownload-circleWebsite Health & CX_UX Audit_ Takealotrun by Deep Seek R1Website Health & CX_UX Audit_ Takealot.pdf113 KBdownload-circle

If you want to run any reports and audits like these on a company you are interested in send us the details! We have 10 days left of Pro!