Starnberg, March 24, 2026 – plugilo and the IT distributor api.de are launching a new generation of digital product advisory together. At the center of this initiative are an AI-powered product search and an AI Advisory Bot that not only helps dealers find the right products faster, but also supports them directly during the decision-making process.
With api.de, plugilo is showing a practical example of how modern product advisory can work in the channel: moving away from pure filter-based search and scattered data sources, and moving toward clear answers, structured product recommendations, and reliable information directly at the point of decision.
The new solution combines a shop-wide AI Search with plugilo Cards as a structured knowledge base. This does not create a black-box answer engine, but an advisory system built on transparent, connected, and continuously updated product information. That is the key difference: plugilo does not see AI Advisory as just a chat tool, but as a real advisory and decision layer for shops, portals, and product environments.
api.de as an example of the next step in digital commerce
api.de is one of the first distributors to show, together with plugilo, how product search, product knowledge, and advisory can be brought together in a new way. In the future, dealers will be able to search for products in natural language, receive direct answers to typical questions, and find, compare, and reuse relevant products more quickly.
The foundation of this solution is the plugilo Card. These cards bundle product data, documents, content, and other information in a structured format that can be used not only in the shop, but also across channels. Search results become usable advisory units. Instead of working with open tabs, PDFs, and many individual links, dealers can collect results in Cards and Stacks, share them, and return to them later. This makes advisory easier, faster, and much more organized.
More than search: AI Advisory directly in the buying process
The new solution at api.de is intentionally not designed as a traditional search mask. Users ask questions in natural language. The system provides relevant answers, product suggestions, and next steps. Where needed, it can guide users toward comparison, selection, contact, or purchase.
plugilo clearly separates two levels:
- a shop-wide AI Searchbot / Advisory Bot for the entire shop
- and an AI Advisory layer directly on individual product objects and Cards
This creates advisory exactly where it is needed: in the shop, on the product, and inside the active decision-making process. Answers are not meant to stand alone. They stay connected to the right product context at all times.
Reliable answers instead of AI without clear sources
A central part of the plugilo solution is data quality. AI Advisory at plugilo is not based only on general shop data, but on a combination of shop content, structured product data, and, where available, verified manufacturer information. plugilo follows a Certified-first principle: when certified or owner-confirmed information is available, it takes priority. This makes answers more transparent, more reliable, and closer to the original source.
This is a major benefit for dealers. They do not only get faster answers, but also more confidence in the advisory process. For manufacturers, it means more control over how their products are presented. For distributors and retail partners, it creates cleaner and more consistent communication across many products and brands. This combination of trust, provenance, and structured advisory logic is what sets the solution apart from generic AI tools.
Benefits for api.de and the channel
For api.de, the partnership with plugilo creates several strategic benefits at once. The shop can guide dealers more effectively through large assortments, reduce typical questions, and significantly improve the quality of advisory in digital sales. At the same time, api.de strengthens its position as an innovative distributor that actively helps shape new standards for product information and product search in the channel.
Resellers and specialist retailers also gain clear value. They get better orientation, faster access to useful product recommendations, and structured results that can be saved, shared, and reused later. Instead of starting from zero every time, advisory results can be continued through Cards and Stacks. This saves time, supports presales teams, and makes product advisory much more efficient in daily business.
Manufacturers also benefit
For plugilo, api.de is also a strong example of how distributors can actively bring manufacturers into the new AI world. plugilo sees itself as an AI gateway for brands and data owners: manufacturers can provide structured product information, improve data quality, and prepare their content so it can be used for AI Advisory.
The more manufacturers participate and provide high-quality data, the better the advisory quality becomes across the whole network. This not only improves the discoverability of individual products, but also strengthens the manufacturer’s role in the digital customer journey.
Better for dealers. Better for customers.
In the end, users of the shop also benefit. They find the right products faster, get clearer answers, and need to do less research on their own. Advisory becomes simpler, more direct, and more useful. Instead of working through filters, PDFs, and different sources, they can ask questions and receive structured, context-based answers.
This is exactly where plugilo creates value: trusted answers where buying decisions happen. With api.de, plugilo is now showing what this approach can look like in practice – in the distributor’s shop, in the dealer’s daily work, and in the future across the entire channel.
“With api.de, we are showing in a very practical way how AI Advisory can work in commerce: not as a black-box chatbot, but as reliable, structured advisory directly inside the shop. Our goal is to make product search simpler, clearer, and more successful – for distributors, dealers, manufacturers, and customers.”
plugilo
“In the age of AI, product data must be available exactly where decisions are made. Together with plugilo, we are taking this step and creating a new form of product search and advisory in our shop.”
Achim Heyne, Owner and Managing Director of api.de
About the solution
The plugilo AI Advisory solution combines:
- shop-wide AI Search and Advisory Bot
- plugilo Cards as structured knowledge objects
- Cards and Stacks as saved and shareable advisory results
- verified and linked data sources
- Certified-first for higher reliability
- open integration options across shops, portals, and data environments
This creates a new infrastructure for digital product advisory: easier to understand, more trustworthy, and closer to the real buying decision.