Glean just raised $150 million at a $7.2 billion valuation, and they’re not promising to replace any job with AI. Instead, they’re fixing something every office worker deals with daily spending way too much time hunting for basic information.
The Search Problem Nobody Talks About
Arvind Jain, Glean’s CEO, puts it simply: “Finding information at work has become increasingly difficult.” He’s not wrong. Even at tech giants like Google and Rubrik, where Jain worked before starting Glean, employees struggled to find what they needed across dozens of workplace apps.
When Jain founded the company in 2019, Glean started with enterprise search boring but essential. Their search engine connects hundreds of workplace systems like Salesforce, Confluence, and Workday, but with a crucial twist: it only shows you information you’re actually allowed to see, and it prioritizes relevant, fresh content over outdated files.
Beyond Search
By 2022, Glean had evolved into something more interesting. Their Glean Assistant finds documents as well as synthesizes answers from your company’s internal data. Ask a question in plain English, get an actual answer based on your organization’s knowledge.
But their newest product, Glean Agents, launched in February 2025, is where things get really practical. These AI agents take action. Zillow built one that analyzes employee performance reviews to help people understand career paths. Miro uses agents to write personalized sales emails, cutting drafting time by 80%. Deutsche Telekom deployed agents to handle IT and HR requests for 80,000 employees.
Jain is refreshingly honest about what these agents can and can’t do: “Agents are still better run in a supervised manner where a human is in charge and looking at the work of the agent.” No grand promises about autonomous AI taking over just practical tools that make work easier.
The Numbers Tell the Story
Glean has crossed $100 million in annual recurring revenue and grown to over 850 employees. Their agents power more than 100 million automated actions annually across customer organizations. Their first user conference drew 10,000 participants, and they’ve secured partnerships with enterprise heavyweights like Dell, Palo Alto Networks, and Snowflake.
Wellington Management led the latest funding round, with participation from Khosla Ventures, Sequoia Capital, and other top-tier firms. Matt Witheiler from Wellington explains their investment: “Glean’s innovative approach and rapid growth are truly impressive, and we believe they are well positioned to be a leader in the future of enterprise AI.”
Security Matters
While other AI companies treat security as an afterthought, Glean built it into their foundation. Every action is authenticated and respects data permissions. Their new Glean Protect offering provides proactive defense against AI-related risks, the kind of unglamorous but critical work that enterprises actually need.
The company also stays model-agnostic, working with OpenAI, Anthropic, Google, and others. They route tasks to whichever model works best for each situation. As Jain puts it: “The technology environment is unstable. You need to be able to assess new models within minutes.”
Using Their Own Medicine
Glean practices what they preach. Their product managers use agents to analyze customer feedback at scale. Engineers automate documentation tasks. Sales teams prepare for meetings using agents that aggregate research automatically.
“We want to be that team of AI agents around every individual that helps you do your great work,” Jain says. It’s happening inside their own company first.
The Anti-Hype Approach
When asked about competitive advantages, Jain’s response is almost boring in its directness: “You just work hard on solving user problems.” No buzzwords, no grand transformation promises just focused execution on real problems.
This funding round wasn’t driven by desperation. With significant interest from top investors, Glean chose Wellington because of their track record helping late-stage companies scale. The $150 million will fund deeper product innovation, ecosystem partnerships, and international expansion.
What This Actually Means
Glean’s $7.2 billion valuation reflects something important: there’s real value in AI that solves actual workplace problems rather than chasing transformational fantasies. While competitors promise to revolutionize everything, Glean focuses on making employees more productive at tasks they’re already doing.
Companies like TIME and Booking.com are using Glean’s platform to accelerate their AI initiatives. Recent recognition from Fast Company, Gartner, and CNBC highlights how they’re setting standards for practical enterprise AI.
The future Glean is building isn’t about replacing human workers, it’s about making them dramatically more effective. Sometimes the most valuable technology is the kind that just works, solving problems people actually have rather than creating new ones they don’t need.