A WhatsApp front desk for Moroccan, Algerian, Tunisian and Libyan customers
We have not tested these four dialects. Our WhatsApp front desk, an AI chatbot for small businesses, answers these customers in clear, simple Arabic and does not claim to speak Darija. This page says exactly what that means, what we know and what we do not, and how you can find out whether it is good enough for your customers.
Not tested in dialect. Send us 20 of your customers’ real messages and we check them for free.
The two messages we have, and what we do not have
We have no written Maghrebi test messages and no replies to show you. The only Maghrebi messages in our test material are two scripts we wrote for our voice-note tests, one Moroccan and one Algerian, which a machine voice read aloud. They were not collected from real customers, we have not run them through the assistant as written chats, and we have no Tunisian or Libyan message at all.
Voice-note test script
Customer: السلام عليكم، بغيت نحجز طابلة لخمسة ديال الناس الليلة على الساعة تمانية... وعافاكم شوفو ليا شي بلاصة هادية شوية، وبغيت نعرف واش كاين شي باركينغ قريب من المطعم حيت كاين الزحام؟ بارك الله فيكم
In English: Peace be upon you. I’d like to book a table for five people tonight at eight... please find me a somewhat quiet spot, and I’d like to know whether there is any parking near the restaurant, because it is crowded. God bless you. (Moroccan: بغيت = I want, ديال = of, عافاكم = please, بلاصة = place, واش كاين = is there.)
What the assistant doesNot tested as a written chat, so we show no reply. By design the assistant would answer in clear, simple Arabic, give the customer’s own key words back where it can (طابلة, بلاصة), and keep Levantine, Egyptian and Gulf slang out. Sent as a voice note, it would first say back what it understood and wait for the yes.
Voice-note test script
Customer: السلام عليكم، حاب نحجز طابلة لخمسة أشخاص الليلة على الساعة تمنية... ومن فضلكم شوفولنا بلاصة هادية شوية، وكذلك حاب نعرف واش كاين باركينغ قريب من المطعم خاطر الزحمة؟ بارك الله فيكم
In English: Peace be upon you. I’d like to book a table for five people tonight at eight... please find us a somewhat quiet spot, and I’d also like to know whether there is parking near the restaurant, because of the crowd. God bless you. (Algerian: حاب = I’d like, خاطر = because, واش كاين = is there.)
What the assistant doesSame position: no written test, so no reply to show. The same rules apply, and we have no evidence yet of how well it reads «تمنية» or «خاطر».
What works, and where it still slips
Works well
It answers in clear, simple, warm Arabic, not in a dialect it does not know.
It gives the customer’s own key words back where it can, so the customer sees they were understood, and uses the plain word when it is unsure of a dialect word.
It keeps Levantine, Egyptian and Gulf slang out of its replies instead of sliding into the nearest dialect it knows.
The facts still come only from your menu, hours and rules. When it does not know, it tells the customer your team will reply and alerts you.
Still slips
We have not tested it in Moroccan, Algerian, Tunisian or Libyan, so we cannot give a score or say which words it misreads.
It has no word list for these dialects. The AI model reads each message itself, but we have not measured how well it reads Darija.
Latin letters: writers from the Maghreb often use the digit 9 for ق and mix in French. The assistant’s Arabizi guide reads 9 as ص, the usual Gulf and Levantine habit, and we have not tested French mixed into a message.
Voice notes are the weakest part, as the numbers below show.
Words you will see in these chats
The assistant has no word list for these four dialects, so this is not a list of what it listens for. It is a reference for you: common words your customers may use. The AI model reads them from its general knowledge, and we have not tested how well.
بغيتI want (Moroccan, Algerian)
حابI’d like (Algerian)
نحبI’d like (Tunisian)
نبيI want (Libyan; Gulf speakers say it too)
واش · واش كاينdo, is, is there (Moroccan, Algerian)
كاينthere is (Moroccan, Algerian)
داباnow (Moroccan)
دروكnow (Algerian)
تواnow (Tunisian)
بزافa lot (Moroccan, Algerian)
برشاa lot (Tunisian)
شحالhow much (Moroccan, Algerian)
قداشhow much (Tunisian)
مزيان · باهيgood, fine (Moroccan · Tunisian)
عافاكمplease (Moroccan)
علاشwhy (Moroccan, Tunisian)
بلاصة · طابلةplace, spot · table
In Latin letters (Arabizi)
9often ق in Maghrebi chats (the assistant’s guide reads it as ص)
bonjour · merciFrench words mixed into the message
Words it is told never to use with a customer whose dialect it cannot place
بدك
هلق
تبي
ده
كتير
دلوقتي
Voice notes and Arabizi
Voice notes are where we are least sure. On real television dialogue in our own tests, the speech recognition we use (ElevenLabs) got 70% of the Algerian words wrong and 62% of the Moroccan words wrong, and only 1 of 50 Algerian clips and 4 of 50 Moroccan clips came out mostly right. We have no number for Tunisian or Libyan. Television is harder than a calm voice note, but it is why the assistant is set up not to book from a voice note straight away: it says back what it understood and waits for the customer’s yes. For these customers we suggest asking them to type the date, the time and the number of people.
Customers from the Maghreb who write in Latin letters often use the digit 9 for ق and mix French words into the message. The assistant’s Latin-letter guide treats 9 as ص, so a Maghrebi spelling can be misread, and we have not tested it. If many of your customers write this way, send us 20 of their messages first.
Where this dialect is spoken
The Maghreb is the western part of the Arab world. Moroccan Arabic (Darija) is spoken in Morocco, alongside the Amazigh languages. Algerian Arabic is spoken in Algeria, where French is common in everyday writing. Tunisian (Derja) is spoken in Tunisia and Libyan Arabic in Libya. They differ from each other, and from the Arabic of the Middle East, enough that speakers from the east often find them hard to follow. Large Maghrebi communities live in France, Spain, Italy, Belgium, the Netherlands and Canada.
Casablanca
Algiers
Tunis
Tripoli
Questions about this dialect
Does your bot speak Moroccan Darija or Algerian Arabic?
No, and we do not claim it. We have not tested Moroccan, Algerian, Tunisian or Libyan. The assistant answers these customers in clear, simple Arabic. The AI model reads each message itself, but we have not measured how well it reads these dialects, so we would rather show you than promise you: send us 20 real messages.
What exactly does it send a Moroccan or Algerian customer?
Clear, simple, warm Arabic with no Levantine, Egyptian or Gulf slang. It is told never to use words such as «بدك», «هلق», «تبي», «ده» or «كتير», so it does not slide into the nearest dialect it knows. It gives the customer’s own key words back where it can, for example «طابلة» or «بلاصة», and uses the plain word when it is unsure.
Is a voice note safe for a booking with a Moroccan or Algerian customer?
Not on its own. On real television dialogue in our tests, the speech recognition we use got 62% of Moroccan words and 70% of Algerian words wrong. So the assistant is set up not to book straight from a voice note: it says back what it understood and waits for the customer’s yes. Typed messages are safer.
How do I find out whether it is good enough for my customers?
Send us 20 real messages your customers have sent, in their own words. We run them through the assistant and send you every reply, the good and the bad, before you decide anything. It is free, and you can also start the free 30-day pilot and read every chat yourself.
We run them through the assistant and send you every reply, the good and the bad, before you decide anything. It is free. Or start the free 30-day pilot and watch every chat yourself.
Tell us about your business. We load your menu and rules, connect the front desk to your WhatsApp, and you watch every chat. 30 days free, no card. We build your website once you decide to keep it.
We take on 3 new pilots a month, so each one gets our full attention.
See it answer as your business
Send us your Instagram, Google Maps or website. We build a front desk that knows your menu, prices and hours, and send you a link to try it, usually within a day. Free, nothing to sign.