Viqus Logo Viqus Logo
Home
Categories
Language Models Generative Imagery Hardware & Chips Business & Funding Ethics & Society Science & Robotics
Resources
AI Glossary Academy CLI Tool Labs
About Contact

Glean Bets on the 'Underneath' – Building the Enterprise AI Infrastructure Layer

AI Enterprise AI Glean Artificial Intelligence Tech Startups Innovation Enterprise Software
February 15, 2026
Source: TechCrunch AI
Viqus Verdict Logo Viqus Verdict Logo 8
Strategic Layer – A Necessary Component
Media Hype 6/10
Real Impact 8/10

Article Summary

Glean is emerging as a critical intermediary in the rapidly evolving enterprise AI market. Amidst the aggressive rollout of AI assistants by tech giants like Microsoft (Copilot) and Google (Gemini), Glean is taking a different approach: building a robust infrastructure layer that sits between LLMs and the diverse SaaS tools that power modern businesses. The company argues that simply integrating a chatbot isn't enough; enterprises need a system that understands their workflows, manages access controls, and ensures data privacy. Glean's approach – connecting to models like ChatGPT, Gemini, and Claude – offers flexibility and avoids vendor lock-in. Crucially, Glean's 'Assistant' provides the necessary context that generic LLMs lack, translating business needs into actionable intelligence. The company's recent $150 million Series F funding, which valued it at $7.2 billion, reflects investor confidence in this strategy, which centers on secure, governed, and contextually-aware AI deployment.

Key Points

  • Glean is building an infrastructure layer connecting enterprises to leading LLMs like ChatGPT and Gemini, rather than offering a direct chatbot solution.
  • The company’s core value proposition lies in managing access controls, governance, and data integration within complex SaaS tool environments.
  • Investors are backing Glean’s strategy of avoiding vendor lock-in and providing a neutral, flexible AI infrastructure layer for enterprise deployments.

Why It Matters

The enterprise AI market is characterized by intense competition and a fragmented landscape. While Microsoft and Google are dominating the 'interface' – the readily visible AI assistants – Glean’s strategy highlights a critical underlying need: a secure, adaptable, and contextually aware infrastructure layer. This is particularly important for larger organizations that rely on multiple SaaS tools and have stringent data governance requirements. If enterprises can’t effectively manage access, data privacy, and workflow integration, the most powerful AI models will be rendered useless. Glean’s success could reshape how businesses adopt and deploy AI, preventing a scenario where powerful models are effectively sidelined by operational challenges.

You might also be interested in