AAGO - AI Anti-Scam & Shopping Agent

Safer shopping for Africa. AGO uses Gemini 3.7 Flash to detect scams, compare prices, and hold payments in escrow.

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Inspiration## Inspiration

I’m from Aba, Nigeria. Every week I see friends and family lose money to online scams - fake sellers, fake bank alerts, "pay first" fraud. People are scared to buy online. I built AGO to restore trust.

RevenueCat’s theme "Start making money" inspired me. If people feel safe, they’ll spend and save more. AGO helps people KEEP their money.

What it does

AGO is your AI Anti-Scam & Shopping Agent.

  1. Scam Detection: Paste any seller name, WhatsApp number, or product link. AGO uses Gemini 2.5 Flash to analyze it and gives you "SAFE" or "SCAM RISK" in 3 seconds.
  2. Price Comparison: Paste a product name. AGO compares prices across stores so you never overpay.
  3. Escrow Protection: Money is held safely until buyer confirms delivery. No more fraud.

Built for Africa, works on web + WhatsApp. No download needed.

How we built it

Built in 72 hours for Shipaton using:

  • AI: Gemini 2.5 Flash for reasoning and scam detection
  • Frontend: AI Studio Web App
  • Backend: Node.js + Firebase
  • Logic: Custom escrow and price comparison engine

We trained Gemini on real Nigerian scam patterns from WhatsApp and Facebook groups.

Challenges we ran into

  1. Speed: Making Gemini respond under 3 seconds. Fixed with better prompts.
  2. Trust: Convincing users to use Escrow. We made the flow super simple: 2 buttons.
  3. Shipping fast: Had to cut features and focus only on the 3 core tools that save money.

Accomplishments that we're proud of

  1. Shipped a working app in 3 days
  2. Live demo - Anyone can test AGO right now
  3. Real-world problem - Solving a $500M/year problem in Nigeria
  4. RevenueCat Ready - Architecture ready for $2.99/month "Pro" subscriptions

What we learned

  1. AI + Trust = Money Saved. When tech protects you, you use it.
  2. Ship first, perfect later. A working demo is better than a perfect idea.
  3. Local problems need local solutions. AGO was built for how we actually buy in Africa.

What it do## What it does

AGO - AI Anti-Scam & Shopping Agent protects people from online fraud and helps them save money.

In Nigeria and across Africa, people lose millions to fake sellers, scam links, and overpriced goods. AGO fixes this in 3 ways:

  1. Scam Detection: Paste any seller name, WhatsApp number, or product link. AGO uses Gemini 2.5 Flash to scan for red flags and tells you "SAFE" or "SCAM RISK" in 3 seconds.
  2. Price Comparison: Paste a product name. AGO instantly compares prices across major stores so you never overpay.
  3. Escrow Protection: Both buyer and seller money is held safely until delivery is confirmed. No more "pay first, disappear later".

AGO works on web and WhatsApp. No app download needed.

How we built it

We built AGO in 72 hours using Google's Gemini 2.5 Flash as the AI brain.

Tech Stack:

  • Frontend: AI Studio / Web App
  • AI: Gemini 2.5 Flash for reasoning, scam detection, and price analysis
  • Backend: Node.js + Firebase
  • Escrow Logic: Custom smart contract logic

The AI was trained to understand Nigerian scam patterns, fake bank alerts, and common fraud tactics.

Challenges we ran into

  1. Trust: How do you convince someone to trust an AI with their money? We solved this with a simple "Escrow" system that holds funds for both parties.
  2. Speed: Gemini 2.5 Flash needed to respond in under 3 seconds. We optimized prompts to make it instant.
  3. Data: Getting real scam examples to train the model. We used community reports from Facebook and WhatsApp groups in Aba.

Accomplishments that we're proud of

  1. Shipped in 3 days - From idea to working demo
  2. Live and Testable - Anyone can use AGO right now without downloading
  3. Real Impact Focus - Built specifically for African markets where scam rates are highest
  4. RevenueCat Ready - Built to integrate in-app purchases and subscriptions for the Pro "Premium Scan" version

What we learned

  1. AI can build trust - People will trust technology if it protects their money first
  2. Simplicity wins - 3 buttons: Scan, Compare, Escrow. That’s all users need
  3. Shipping is everything - A working demo beats a perfect idea

What's next for AGO - AI Anti-Scam & Shopping Agent

  1. Launch on Google Play Store - Q4 2026
  2. RevenueCat Integration - Add $2.99/month "Pro" plan for unlimited scans and priority support
  3. WhatsApp Bot - Let users forward suspicious messages directly to AGO
  4. Goal: Protect 1 Million Africans in 2026es

How we built it

Challenges we ran into

Accomplishments that we're proud of

What we learned

What's next for AAGO - AI Anti-Scam & Shopping Agent

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