BeNeering launches AI-powered purchasing agents for SAP environments

BeNeering, a leading provider of AI-powered indirect purchasing solutions, has launched a completely updated version of its Digital Procurement Platform, with a new AI engine at its core. The solution is designed for SAP environments and will help companies automate and streamline their operational indirect purchasing process.

The platform is based directly on SAP ERP Central Component (SAP ECC) and SAP S/4HANA without the need for middleware or data replication, enabling real-time data and document exchange. This gives employees a common interface for all indirect purchasing matters while companies can ensure compliance with internal regulations and optimize their total operating costs.

With the new version, artificial intelligence becomes an integrated part of the user experience. The AI functions are built directly into the purchasing processes, work with current SAP data and can be activated modularly based on the needs of each customer.

AI will reduce manual work in indirect purchasing

Indirect purchasing often involves extensive manual work in larger organizations. Needs arise through various channels, supplier quotes are sent via email or PDF files, product categories need to be classified, and compliance requirements need to be checked.

These are the challenges that BeNeering’s AI engine is designed to address. The solution does not operate as a separate chatbot alongside the purchasing system, but as an intelligent warehouse that is integrated directly into the platform.

AI assistant as central input

The central AI assistant serves as users’ primary gateway to the platform’s AI capabilities. Employees can communicate with the system in natural language to, among other things:

• search for products and articles
• process supplier quotes
• find documents
• identify approved suppliers
• get answers to questions about purchasing processes

In the background, an orchestration engine routes each request to the correct data source, platform function, or specialized AI agent.

Specialized AI agents

The platform's AI architecture consists of multiple specialized agents that can be activated individually or combined depending on the customer's needs.

Intake Agents

Structures unclear purchasing needs, supplements them with SAP data and transforms them into rules-driven purchasing processes.

Quotation Processing Agents

Interprets supplier quotes from PDF files and emails and extracts structured information to reduce manual work.

Material Group Agents

Classifies purchasing needs based on historical SAP data and company-specific purchasing rules.

Catalog and Content Agents

Identifies relevant products and items across multiple purchasing channels in a single search.

Knowledge and Policy Agents

Answers questions about internal guidelines, purchasing processes and compliance requirements.

Status and Document Agents

Provides real-time visibility into orders, documents and process status directly from SAP.

Order Confirmation Agents

Processes supplier confirmations and supports subsequent control and reconciliation processes.

Real-time data from SAP

Via BeNeering Cloud Adapter, a certified SAP add-on that is installed directly into the customer's SAP environment, the AI engine gets access to current ERP data in real time.

This includes, among other things, purchase history, invoice data, supplier information, general ledger accounts, cost centers, product categories, and compliance rules.

This means that AI capabilities are not based on copied or delayed information, but work with the organization's current data. Recommendations around suppliers and compliance are therefore based on the actual situation in the company's SAP environment.

Open architecture and full control

BeNeerings The AI architecture is designed to combine openness with governance and control. The company plans to use MCP-based services that will enable the platform's AI agents to be used from external environments such as internal copilots, Microsoft Teams, and other collaboration platforms.

At the same time, customers retain control over which data sources are used, which AI agents are activated, and which regulations are applied.

The platform has also been developed with both GDPR and EU AI Regulation in mind to ensure data sovereignty, governance and human control.

“AI in procurement creates real value when it is integrated directly into the purchasing process and works with the company's actual data, rules and workflows, instead of operating alongside them,” says Christoph Moll, founder and CEO of BeNeering.

“Over the past two decades, we have built a deep SAP integration for operational purchasing. The AI engine is the next step in this architecture. It is not a separate project, but a natural continuation of our work to make rules-driven purchasing processes easier for users.”.

Xavier Olivera, Director Solution Intelligence and Lead Analyst for P2P at The Hackett Group, also views the development positively.

– BeNeering’s AI strategy is aligned with the overall goal of simplifying purchasing processes and creating operational consistency. The AI capabilities are integrated into both workflows and user interactions in SAP-based environments.

He believes that the difference between different AI solutions in purchasing increasingly comes down to how well the technology actually supports daily work processes.

– BeNeering's strategy reflects this development by integrating AI into daily purchasing work instead of positioning the technology as a separate transformation project.

With the new AI engine, BeNeering another step towards making indirect purchasing more automated, data-driven and user-friendly for companies working in SAP environments.

More information is available at BeNeering website.