Next-level enterprise search: how Glean looks beyond the AI hypes

Smart solutions that no one uses are worthless. That's the point Gavin Guinane, Field CTO at Glean, makes right at the start of his talk at Hyper '25. He opens with a story his father once told him about a dog food company that invested massive amounts of money in a new product, only to completely fail. Why? Because the dogs simply didn’t like the food. 

And according to Gavin, it’s the same with AI: you can pour millions into the latest technology, but if people can't or won’t use it, what's the point?

In a world full of AI hype and endless ChatGPT clones, Glean focuses on something far more essential: making knowledge accessible to everyone — without hassle, without tickets, and without losing oversight. Gavin believes AI shouldn’t add another layer of complexity but should be a smart solution that actually works and keeps you in control.

Glean: smart search for enterprises

Glean started as an enterprise search solution, built by a team of former Google Search engineers and experts with experience in, among others, the Meta feed and Chrome extensions. But by now, Glean is much more than that. The platform gives employees instant access to knowledge scattered across tools like Google Drive, Slack, SharePoint, or Salesforce. 

And not just any access: Glean understands context and ensures the best answer comes up first. The information that your colleagues use most frequently? That gets top priority. No more time-consuming searches—just the right answer right away.

From search to AI agents: automation without hassle

But Glean doesn’t stop at search. During Hyper '25, Gavin shows how Glean is evolving into a platform with AI agents—smart assistants that take work off your hands. Think of an IT helpdesk that solves issues automatically or an AI agent that finds, fills out, and prepares documents without manual effort. 

The principle? The best ticket is no ticket. If AI answers your question immediately, there's no need to start complex processes in tools like ServiceNow or Salesforce. Still, the user remains fully in charge. AI does the work, but you keep control.

Why Glean is not just another AI chatbot (and that’s a good thing)

While many companies implement AI as a simple chat window, Glean deliberately takes a different approach. Chatbots are often linear, confusing, and unsuitable for complex workflows. That's why Glean is working on Glean Paper—an intelligent AI dashboard where you can organize, restructure, and use information however you want. No endless scrolling through chat messages, but clarity and control. Because you want to arrange information intuitively—exactly the way that works for you.

Keeping security and costs under control

What sets Glean apart is how it handles security and cost management. The platform helps detect errors in permissions—like SharePoint documents that are accidentally public. Glean also alerts you when AI pulls information from sources that shouldn’t be visible to a particular user. 

And it helps companies maintain cost transparency. AI workflows can be expensive, especially when a model uses thousands of tokens for a single task. Glean helps companies keep a tight grip on this, so AI doesn’t become an uncontrollable cost monster.

Don’t forget your people: AI only works if employees get it

And here comes Gavin’s most important message: technology only works if people can work with it. AI solutions fail if employees don’t understand how to use them. That’s why Glean advocates for companies that are truly AI-native—not just technically, but culturally. 

Employees must know what AI can do for them, how it makes their job easier, and how they stay in control. Otherwise, AI remains nothing more than empty promises and expensive tools no one uses.

From search to orchestration

This brings Gavin to a bigger point: business orchestration. Using AI not just to find knowledge but to immediately kick off the right processes. So, instead of asking, "Where can I find the onboarding document?" you get: "Here’s the document—plus, I’ve already initiated the right systems." Working smarter, switching faster.