Shopify Flow and Sidekick are complementary
Flow is designed for event-driven workflows: when a trigger occurs, conditions are evaluated and actions run automatically. Sidekick is conversational and on-demand. A merchant or team member initiates the interaction.
Use Shopify Flow when
- The rule is repeatable and event-driven.
- The workflow should run without human initiation.
- The action can be governed by clear conditions.
- Exceptions and failure handling are understood.
Use Sidekick when
- You need an on-demand explanation, analysis or supported admin action.
- The parameters vary each time.
- A human is actively reviewing the context.
- The task benefits from natural-language interaction.
Some problems need neither — or both
Custom apps, Shopify Functions, APIs and enterprise middleware can be more appropriate for complex or high-integrity workflows. Sidekick can help a human investigate; Flow can automate a stable step; custom systems can own the deeper integration.
CAT helps choose the execution layer
Codified Algorithmic Thinking™ means Define → Decompose → Orchestrate → Execute → Validate → Learn. Trigger → Condition → Action is a useful Flow pattern, but it is not the definition of CAT.
Current Codified Commerce model
We no longer sell a separate Sidekick service or “CAT Stack” package. Buy one CAT AI Automation at your selected speed, starting at ₹10,000 for Boost, paid in full, and share your business goal and required access. CAT AI selects, runs and closes the next useful action with Codified Commerce expert management. Monthly and weekly options provide one Automation per billing cycle.
