Inspiration
Finding a specific item in Kazakhstan is harder than it should be. The same product is sold on a dozen different sites and in different cities, prices vary widely, and used listings are scattered across classified boards. People end up opening tab after tab and comparing everything by hand. We wanted one search box: type a word and instantly see where the item is sold, which price is best, and what condition it’s in.
What it does
FINDINGS from KAZ is a search engine for almost anything you can buy in Kazakhstan, excluding drugs, alcohol, adult content, and other harmful categories. Those queries are blocked.
For every search, the app:
shows product variations: color, model version, year, kit, city, and store; sorts them by price in tenge and marks the best deal with a “!!” badge, inspired by the brilliant move in chess; describes the item: new or used, its condition, and what’s included; links to a search for that exact product at the seller’s site; ships as an open-source program, with a GitHub-style landing page and a download button. How we built it
We built the site in plain HTML, CSS, and JavaScript in a single file, with no backend. For each query, the demo generates a space of about 1,175,040 variations and shows the cheapest ones page by page. Links go to real searches on Kaspi and OLX, and for the other stores to a site-restricted search. The design is pink, yellow, and white, with floating “!!” badges, and there is a separate palette for dark mode. It works on mobile, and the animation turns off automatically for users who prefer reduced motion.
Challenges we ran into Most Kazakhstani stores have no open API, and many sites forbid bulk scraping in their terms. We’ll need to rely on public pages and official data sources. We don’t have a live price database yet, so the demo’s variations and prices are simulated. We say so clearly on the page. The page had to work for any query, not just a few hand-picked examples. We had to plan the filter for prohibited categories from the start. Accomplishments that we’re proud of A working search for any word, with millions of variations per query. A clear card for each item: price, city, store, condition, and a link. A memorable look and an animation that signals “best price found.” The whole project fits in one file that is easy to put on GitHub. What we learned The hard part of product search isn’t the interface, it’s getting real data. An item’s condition (new, used, defects) matters to buyers as much as its price. Honesty matters in a demo: it’s better to state that prices are simulated than to pass them off as real. Safety has to be built in from day one, for example blocking prohibited categories. What’s next for FINDINGS from KAZ Real price and availability collection from open sources and official APIs, following each site’s rules. A Windows installer, then Android and iOS apps. Price tracking with alerts when an item gets cheaper. Seller and listing reliability scores, flagging suspiciously low prices. More cities and sources, plus Kazakh language support. Item photos and side-by-side comparison of two options.
