SAN FRANCISCO, April 21, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Tonita, the newest conversational AI shopping assistant, is now live and ready for shoppers. The site offers a smarter, personalized and more exciting way to browse and buy clothing online, whether you’re updating your wardrobe or need a specific outfit for an upcoming event.
Unlike traditional retailer websites, Tonita is designed for modern shoppers who are tired of juggling dozens of tabs or browsing through cluttered, hard-to-navigate retail sites only to find their size is out of stock or it’s only available for in-store pick-up. The platform introduces a more intuitive e-commerce experience — one that searches the way real people think. It’s free to use, and if shoppers sign up for an account, the personalized assistant can learn their habits and provide better customized results.
Launching first in fashion, Tonita allows users to search conversationally. For example, typing “I’m going to a formal wedding in San Francisco this summer and need dress ideas” will reveal curated results tailored to that search, including the item (dresses), style (formal), location (San Francisco) and season (summer). Users can scan through the suggested options and narrow their search further — “show me more options in a size 8, that are red, made of satin and on discount.” Once the perfect match is found, one click brings them to the verified retailer’s website where the item is ready for purchase. If the user isn’t ready to “add to cart,” they can return to the Tonita page to continue their search.
Tonita’s founder, former Google technologist Dandapani Sivakumar, was inspired to build the platform after a frustrating experience shopping for a kitchen knife. He knew all shoppers face similar dilemmas, so he created a platform that enabled shoppers to gain real-time insights and recommendations about the latest fashion trends, pricing and more — all in one place.
“I knew exactly what I needed, but no search tool could understand my intent or return results that made sense,” Sivakumar said. “That’s when it hit me — shopping technology hadn’t caught up to the way people actually think and search. We use natural language every day, yet online shopping still forces us to click through endless filters and guess the right keywords. I wanted to build something that felt more human, more intuitive — taking what you mean and turning it into actual results.”
Unlike traditional AI chat tools or e-commerce filters, Tonita pulls live listings from major and boutique retailers alike, combing through product descriptions and images to match even vague requests. It can find items from stores that typically go under the radar due to poor tagging or descriptions. Tonita is currently focused on clothing because it is universally needed and can be time-consuming for anyone. The platform has future plans to expand into additional verticals like home goods.
Why Tonita Stands Out
- Real product results: links to items currently in stock from hundreds of sites across the internet.
- All price points: from bargain brands to luxury designers, and everything in between.
- User-friendly search options: browse by size, budget, style or sustainability.
- Verifiable listings: every product shown is linked to a live page.
- Smart alerts: favorite an item and get notified if it drops in price.
- Photo search: upload a photo of a piece of clothing to search for similar options.
“Get in, Tonita. We’re going shopping”
Tonita is a personal shopper for everyone: busy professionals with limited time, fashionistas who like having options when purchasing clothing, conscious consumers who value supporting small businesses – it even simplifies the process for people who hate shopping and just want to quickly get what they need. Users will also find it easier to continue to shop using the platform over time, as Tonita will learn from previous searches and remember things like styles, sizes and ideal price points. Because the platform can track evolving sizes, it will be easier for parents to shop for their children as they grow.
There is no need to wonder if an item is in stock. Searching for “female running shoes in a size 7 that cost under $100” will only show results for shoes within those filters that are in-stock for shoppers to immediately purchase.
“We want Tonita to be like Google — universal, intuitive and trusted,” Sivakumar said. “Tonita is not only your shopping friend, it’s a virtual mall where your favorite clothing stores and brands are waiting for you to browse. It’s a personal shopping assistant that curates suggestions according to your style, and it is available anytime, anywhere at your fingertips.”
A media kit with logos, photos and more is available here. Visit http://www.tonita.co to start your search.
About Tonita
Tonita is an AI shopping assistant that helps people find what they’re looking for online — faster and with less hassle. The search engine returns real, in-stock product results from major and boutique retailers. The platform includes helpful filters for size, budget and style, and users can favorite items to get notified about price drops. Learn more at http://www.tonita.co/.
Media Contact
Bethany Rhodes
Uproar by Moburst for Tonita
Bethany@Moburst.com
