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GlossaryWhat is an insight engine?
An insight engine goes further than search. It connects all your information sources, understands what is in them and gives answers, facts and context, also to AI.
In short
An insight engine connects to the information sources of an organisation, understands their content and delivers relevant answers and insights, while respecting who may see what. It goes further than classic enterprise search: instead of a list of documents, it extracts facts, relations and answers, and gives AI models the right context. Mindbreeze InSpire is an example: an AI-powered Enterprise Intelligence solution with connectors to more than 500 data sources.
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What exactly is an insight engine?
Most organisations have their knowledge spread over many systems: a document management system, SharePoint, ERP, CRM, mailboxes and file shares. An insight engine indexes all those sources, analyses the content with semantic technology and machine learning, and makes it available through search, answers and AI agents.
According to Mindbreeze, an insight engine is the best and scalable way to combine generative AI with internal data: it connects your internal data, takes care of all access rights, extracts key facts and gives the language model the right factual information to answer.
Insight engine or enterprise search?
| Aspect | Classic enterprise search | Insight engine |
|---|---|---|
| Result | A list of documents | Answers, facts and relations |
| Understanding | Keywords | Meaning, context and intent |
| Sources | Often one or a few systems | Many systems through connectors |
| Permissions | Depend on each system | Enforced for every query |
| Role in AI | Limited | Provides the context for AI answers and agents |
What can you do with an insight engine?
- Find the expert: identify who knows most about a topic.
- Answer questions with sources, from policies to technical documentation.
- Prepare customer and support cases with all relevant information in one view.
- Pre-answer RFPs and tenders from earlier answers.
- Give Copilot, ChatGPT or your own AI agents trusted context.
Insight engine and document management
An insight engine does not replace your document management system. It builds on it. The better your documents are structured, with metadata, versions and permissions, the better the answers.
That is why SoftAdvice starts with the data foundation in M-Files or SharePoint, and then connects the sources to Mindbreeze InSpire.
Frequently asked questions about insight engines
What is an insight engine?
An insight engine is software that connects to the information sources of an organisation, understands their content and delivers relevant answers and insights, while respecting who may see what.
What is the difference with a search engine?
A search engine returns a list of documents that match your keywords. An insight engine understands meaning and context, extracts facts and relations, and gives answers with their sources.
Does an insight engine replace M-Files or SharePoint?
No. It connects to the systems you already use and makes their content findable and usable together. Your systems and their permissions stay in place.
Does an insight engine respect permissions?
A good insight engine inherits and enforces existing permissions for every query. Mindbreeze InSpire, for example, enforces document-, entity- and field-level permissions.
Which insight engine does SoftAdvice work with?
SoftAdvice works with Mindbreeze InSpire, through a strategic partnership for the Benelux. Mindbreeze InSpire connects more than 500 data sources and gives AI answers and agents a trusted knowledge foundation.
Our consultants are happy to think along with you.
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