Otter.ai CEO Sam Liang isn’t glad with the corporate being considered, and used, as only a assembly notetaker. Liang needs Otter.ai to turn into a go-to supply for enterprises and a brand new batch of merchandise launched Tuesday is step one in that evolution.
The Silicon Valley-based AI assembly assistant startup launched Tuesday a brand new suite of instruments for enterprises designed to raised incorporate knowledge from conferences into different workflows by funneling that info to a central information base. The intention is to develop Otter’s enterprise by serving to firms get extra out of the conferences they file.
Otter’s new product suite consists of an API that enables customers to construct customized integrations with platforms like Jira and HubSpot, an MCP server — which connects customers’ Otter knowledge to exterior AI fashions — and a brand new AI agent that may search an organization’s conferences notes or shows.
Liang informed TechCrunch it’s the subsequent section of Otter’s life.
“We’re evolving from a gathering notetaker to a company assembly information base,” Liang stated. “This can be a system file for conversations. It will probably assist companies scale their progress and drive measurable enterprise worth.”
When Otter was based in 2016, there have been only a handful of assembly transcription firms — a far leap from right now. The AI increase that kicked off in 2022 fueled a surge in startups like Granola or Circleback. Even older gamers like Fireflies have seen a surge in curiosity.
Liang argues this transition places Otter right into a separate division than its former friends.
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Conferences are the place the bulk of firm information is saved, in Liang’s opinion, whether or not that’s notes from a buyer gross sales name or discussions round a advertising technique. However with no centralized place for these assembly notes, that info can solely assist an organization a lot.
“A number of occasions, inefficiency occurs due to info silos,” Liang stated. “One staff doesn’t know what the opposite staff is doing, and it thinks that that was deliberate like a month in the past. Oftentimes the plan modifications, however not all people is knowledgeable. So, the concept is to create a permission system in order that you understand a lot of the [nonconfidential] info is shared as broadly as potential.”
Not each assembly with Otter might be straight added to this company-wide information base and customers can select to limit assembly observe entry for recordings that take care of delicate info.
Worker and knowledge privateness stays a priority regardless of entry controls. Even when a gathering is round a impartial matter, Otter transcriptions choose the small speak and chatter that occurs earlier than and after conferences, which may comprise gossip or info meant for under sure individuals to listen to.
Otter can be the topic of an August class-action lawsuit that claims the corporate was recording personal conversations with out consumer consent and utilizing that info to coach its transcription companies.
Liang stated that whereas he can’t touch upon the lawsuit particularly, this isn’t a problem particular to Otter, and that when trying on the larger image, extra entry to info is higher than not.
“In the event that they accuse us, then they might accuse everybody else, all of the instruments you heard about doing assembly notes,” Liang stated. “My view is that we’re on the suitable facet of historical past. We’re constructing this new AI revolution. If you’d like AI to assist, you must put AI within the conferences.”
