Comparison · Outmind vs. Glean
Both Glean and Outmind help employees find and leverage knowledge scattered across the company's systems. The real difference isn't a list of AI features—it's the type of information environment your organization needs to be able to search.
Outmind is designed specifically for organizations with a high volume of documents, which need to search their file servers, SharePoint, emails, archives, and business databases while adhering to existing access rights and making this knowledge actionable for both employees and AI assistants.
Enterprise search, AI-powered responses, and document analysis—without having to migrate your data repositories first.
Verified Access Rights
On which projects have we already performed underpinning work?
18 results · 4 sources
NDC_underpinning_P2.pdf
“… underpinning with micropiles, carried out in four phases …”
CCTP_South_Island_v4.docx
“… underpinning of the existing foundations …”
REX Construction Project: Lyon Office Building
“… the underpinning work stayed on schedule despite water seepage …”
Outmind Assistant
3 sources
Three projects are relevant: Pont de la Loire (2019), Lyon Commercial Expansion (2021), and Îlot Sud Renovation (2023). The calculation sheets and technical specifications are included in the project files.
SharePointCCTP_South_Island_v4.docxOutlookREX Construction Project: Lyon Office Building, 2021Response based on the research findings
Both platforms offer company search functionality and AI-powered access to internal knowledge. Their strengths vary depending on where your knowledge resides and how your teams need to find it.
Criterion
Glean
Outmind
Company Search
Yes
Yes
AI Responses Based on Internal Knowledge
Yes
Yes
Source access rights respected
Yes
Yes
Connector Strategy
SaaS ecosystem and very large enterprise
Targeted corporate repositories, including document and historical environments
Public Connector Catalog
275+ connectors announced by Glean
Targeted Catalog: Microsoft 365, Google Workspace, iManage, file servers
File Servers and Project Archives
Accurate sources and deployment prerequisites to be validated with Glean
Outmind's core use case, designed to index file servers without prior migration
Research Approach
AI-powered search based on the business context and its graph
Deterministic keyword search, semantic search, and AI combined
Scanned Documents and Archives
To be validated according to your project requirements
OCR and Supported Archival Use Cases
Data Deployment and Storage
Several enterprise deployment options
Hosting in Europe, one dedicated instance per customer, additional options depending on the plan
Pricing Model
Please contact Glean directly
Pricing based on indexed data volume and usage, not on the number of users
Particularly relevant for
A broad “Work AI” layer across large application ecosystems
Engineering, construction, legal, and other organizations with a high volume of documentation
Glean capabilities documented on Glean’s public pages and in its documentation in September 2026. Connector scopes and deployment requirements are subject to change: verify them with each vendor for your specific environment.
See if Outmind is a good fit for your document management environmentGlean is a powerful enterprise AI platform. It makes sense to compare alternatives when your most valuable knowledge lies outside of a primarily SaaS-based collaborative stack, or when document search itself is critical.
01
Companies don't store everything in Slack, Notion, or cloud drives. In engineering, construction, consulting, and the legal sector, years of project knowledge lie dormant in network drives, historical files, email archives, industry-specific document management systems, and scanned files.
Outmind is designed to index these repositories without requiring that the content be migrated first.
02
For many business tasks, “semantically similar” isn’t enough. An engineer needs a specific project reference, a contract clause, a drawing version, a calculation note, or the email that approves a decision.
Outmind combines deterministic search, semantic search, and AI assistants: it finds the exact reference and searches the entire document database.
03
Outmind is designed for business documents and archives: PDFs, Office files, emails, scanned documents, and large project repositories.
This is especially true when historical deliverables and technical files are just as valuable as the knowledge stored in modern collaboration tools.
04
Outmind's business model is based primarily on the volume of indexed content and the use of AI, not on the number of employees authorized to use the search feature.
For an organization that wants to expand research to a broad population, this significantly changes the project's economics.
Both products are viable options for a large company. The choice depends on the scope of the project and what you expect from the search.
Are you looking for a comprehensive “Work AI” platform built on a very large SaaS ecosystem?
A very extensive catalog of connectors is a top selection criterion.
Business agents and the execution of cross-application workflows are at the heart of the project.
Most of your knowledge environment is already represented in supported cloud applications.
Critical data is distributed across file servers, SharePoint, email, archives, and document management systems.
Historical documents and project files are of strategic value.
You need both a comprehensive keyword search and a semantic or AI-powered search.
Technical, legal, and engineering documents make up a significant portion of your collection.
European infrastructure and procurement requirements are among the criteria.
You want to expand the research to a broad population without primarily charging the department.
The right choice depends less on the number of features than on where your contacts live, the level of search accuracy you expect, and how you want AI systems to access that information.
File Servers and Historical Knowledge
A company’s most valuable knowledge is often the hardest to access. A 2018 project file. A calculation sheet buried on a network drive. The email in which the client approved a design change. A scanned PDF stored in an archive. A deliverable that exists in multiple versions across SharePoint and a file server.
Outmind brings these repositories together into a single search and AI layer, without requiring the organization to migrate its documents first.
Users search by exact terms, by meaning, or ask an AI assistant a question and review the source documents behind the answer. Forengineering and design firms, years of accumulated work become reusable again instead of remaining buried in files.
See Outmind in action with your own documentsSearch Results
Verified Access Rights
4 sources on the same case
CR_MOA_Meeting_2018-11.docx
“… decision reached regarding the foundation option …”
NDC_Foundations_P4_vC.pdf
“… 1,200 mm bored piles, variant B …”
Project Charter Approval, Lot 3
“… the project owner confirms the selected option …”
Formwork_Plan_P4_scan.pdf
“… P4 support, supplemental geotechnical survey …”
Outmind Assistant
3 sources
The client approved Option B (1,200-mm bored piles) on March 14, 2023, subject to additional geotechnical investigation of support P4.
Response based on the research findings
Outmind is a French enterprise search provider designed for organizations that want to make their internal knowledge accessible without compromising their governance. When the provider’s jurisdiction, European infrastructure, data residency, and procurement requirements are part of the selection process, Outmind can be a particularly good fit.
A French company, hosting in Europe, a dedicated instance for each client. Your data is never used to train a model.
We do not store your documents. The index is encrypted at rest and in transit, with dedicated keys for each client. Outmind is ISO 27001 and SOC 2 Type II certified.
Outmind replicates the access rights of the source systems: each user sees only the content to which they already have access. The exact behavior depends on the connector and is validated during the project.
Outmind is used by engineering firms, design firms, consulting firms, and infrastructure providers whose document collections number in the tens of millions of files.
Thanks to Outmind’s indexing of document databases and project archives, Setec engineers and project managers can retrieve and reuse twenty years’ worth of studies instead of spending hours searching, recreating deliverables, or missing critical information about a project.
50M+
indexed documents
+70%
monthly active users
≈1 000
Connectors with permissions in production
We estimate that Outmind saves each of our project managers and engineers one month of work per year.
Thierry Douceron
Director of Information Systems, Setec Bâtiment
Are you comparing several enterprise search solutions? Our comparison of the best enterprise search solutions reviews several vendors on the market. If you have a question about your specific environment, you can also contact us.
What is the best alternative to Glean?
There is no single best option for all organizations. The right choice depends on your data sources, security requirements, and intended AI use cases. Outmind is particularly well-suited for document-heavy organizations that need enterprise search covering file servers, SharePoint, email, archives, and line-of-business databases, with both precise search results and AI-generated answers.
What is the difference between Outmind and Glean?
Both products offer enterprise search and AI-powered access to internal knowledge. Glean covers a very broad application ecosystem and is developing increasingly extensive Work AI capabilities and agents. Outmind focuses on enterprise documents, file servers, historical repositories, and search accuracy, combining deterministic search, semantic search, and AI assistants.
Can Outmind search file servers?
Yes. File servers are a key use case for Outmind. Outmind indexes on-premises file repositories while preserving the existing information architecture and access model, without requiring a prior migration to another document management platform.
Does Outmind work with SharePoint and Microsoft 365?
Yes. Outmind connects to Microsoft environments, including SharePoint and other Microsoft 365 sources. Users can search the connected information through a unified interface, taking into account existing access rights.
Does Outmind respect the right to access documents?
Outmind is designed to replicate and enforce the access rights of the source systems, ensuring that each user sees only the content they are authorized to access. The exact behavior may vary depending on the connector and is validated during implementation for the customer's environment.
Is Outmind a European enterprise search solution?
Yes. Outmind is a French company that offers an enterprise search infrastructure hosted in Europe. Organizations with specific requirements regarding data residency, dedicated instances, or deployment must confirm the exact architecture available for their subscription and their security constraints.
How does Outmind's pricing compare to Glean's?
Outmind's pricing model is based primarily on the volume of indexed content and the use of AI, not on the number of end users. Glean’s terms and conditions are available directly from Glean. For a meaningful comparison, compare the total cost based on the same data repositories, the same user base, and the same deployment requirements. Our pricing plans and ROI calculator are publicly available.
