# Best AI Assistants for Business in 2026

October 3, 2026 · Justin Canetti · 11 min read · Comparisons

## The short answer

**The best AI assistant for business is usually the one that fits the tools your team already uses, then the one that adds the specific work you need.** Start with your stack, your team size, and your data rules.

- **Best if you live in Microsoft 365:** Microsoft Copilot.
- **Best if you live in Google Workspace:** Gemini, which is included in Workspace plans.
- **Best general-purpose workplace assistant:** ChatGPT Business or Claude Team.
- **Best for finding answers across company apps:** Glean.
- **Best for building your own workflow agent:** Lindy.
- **Best for email and meeting follow-up:** Fyxer.
- **Best for work that involves other people:** OpenAssistant.
- **Best of the new always-on agents for teams:** Town, which is available now with team plans. OpenAI Dots and Microsoft Autopilot are worth watching, but Dots is rolling out to select plans and regions and Autopilot is in private preview.

The 2026 wave of personal agents (Poke, Instinct, Meta Muse and others) is mostly aimed at individuals, so we only list the ones with a real work path here. For the texting-first group, see [best AI assistants you can text](https://openassistant.us/blog/best-ai-assistants-you-can-text).

## AI Assistants for Business at a Glance

| Tool | Best for | Key capabilities | Pricing |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| **ChatGPT Business** | A general-purpose assistant for the whole team | Shared workspace, connected apps, agents, no training on business data by default | About $20 per user per month annual, $25 monthly, 2-seat minimum (OpenAI help center via search, third-party reports); Enterprise on request |
| **Claude Team** | Writing, analysis, and coding help with admin controls | Claude Code, Microsoft 365 integration, enterprise search, SSO, no training by default | Standard seat $20 annual or $25 monthly; Premium seat $100 annual or $125 monthly |
| **Microsoft Copilot** | Microsoft 365 organizations | AI inside Word, Excel, Outlook, Teams | Copilot Business $18 promotional (first year, purchases through December 31, 2026), $21 standard per user per month on annual billing (Microsoft); needs a Microsoft 365 Business plan |
| **Gemini in Workspace** | Google Workspace organizations | Gemini in Docs, Sheets, Slides, Meet, and Gmail, included in plans | Included in Workspace; Business Standard $14 per user per month (Google), with promotions for new customers |
| **Glean** | Enterprise search and company knowledge | Search, assistants, and agents across company apps with permission controls | Not published; demo |
| **Lindy** | Building a custom workflow agent | Inbox, scheduling, meetings, routines, 1,500+ integrations | Plus $29.99, Pro $99.99, Max $199.99 per user per month |
| **Fyxer** | Executive-assistant style email and meetings | Email labels and drafts, meeting recording, follow-ups | Free plan; Pro $37, Team $64 per person per month annually |
| **Town** | A proactive assistant per person, with team plans | Own @town.com email, Slack, WhatsApp, routines, approvals by default, audit log, SOC 2 Type II, training off by default | Free; Starter $15 per month; Pro $49 and Power $99 per month billed annually; Team $59 and Team Plus $149 per seat per month (billing docs); Enterprise custom |
| **OpenAI Dots** | Always-on agents inside ChatGPT, Slack, and Teams | Own cloud computer, 4,000+ app plugins, approvals for account actions; texting announced as later | First dot included in eligible plans; extra dots not priced yet |
| **Microsoft Autopilot (formerly Scout)** | Microsoft 365 organizations that can join a preview | Own identity in your tenant, @mentions in Teams, Outlook and Microsoft 365 access, approval before sensitive actions | Billed via GitHub account; amounts not published; private preview |
| **OpenAssistant** | Coordinating work with colleagues, clients, and vendors | Own phone number and email, calls, scheduling, shared tasks, workflows | Private beta; request access |

*Details reflect vendor sites and, where noted, third-party pricing reports as of October 2026. Pricing and features change often, so confirm with the vendor.*

## How We Chose the Best AI Assistant for Business

A business assistant has to do more than answer questions. It has to fit your existing software, respect who is allowed to see what, and give an administrator control. We grouped tools by the kind of help they give and compared each on fit, price, and data handling.

Where a vendor does not publish a price, we say so, and where a vendor page blocked us and we relied on search results or third-party reports instead, we mark that. For a practical starting point, see [how to use AI at work](https://openassistant.us/blog/how-to-use-ai-at-work) and [tasks to automate with AI](https://openassistant.us/blog/tasks-to-automate-with-ai).

## ChatGPT Business: Best General-Purpose Assistant for Teams

ChatGPT Business gives a team a shared workspace with connected apps and agents. OpenAI's help center, as we could confirm through search results and third-party reports because OpenAI's pages blocked our fetch, lists about $20 per user per month on annual billing and $25 monthly, with a minimum of two standard seats, and the plan is described as excluding business data from training by default. Confirm with OpenAI. Enterprise adds more controls and is priced on request.

The limit: it mostly acts when asked and has no phone number or email of its own. See [ChatGPT for work vs. Claude Cowork](https://openassistant.us/blog/claude-cowork-vs-chatgpt).

## Claude Team: Best for Writing, Analysis, and Coding With Admin Controls

Claude's Team plan is $20 per standard seat per month on annual billing ($25 monthly) and $100 per premium seat ($125 monthly). It includes Claude Code, a Microsoft 365 integration, enterprise search across your organization, central billing, SSO, and admin controls for connectors. Anthropic states there is no model training on your content by default on Team plans. It is described as suited to teams of 2 to 150.

The limit: sessions are individual, and it has no phone or email identity of its own.

## Microsoft Copilot: Best if Your Business Runs on Microsoft 365

Copilot puts AI inside Word, Excel, Outlook, and Teams. Microsoft lists the Microsoft 365 Copilot Business add-on at $18 per user per month as a promotional rate, and third-party reports say it is limited to organizations up to 300 users and must be added to a qualifying Microsoft 365 plan. Microsoft's pricing page lists the regular rate at $21 per user per month on annual billing, and says the promotion applies to the first year of purchases made through December 31, 2026.

The limit: its value depends on how much of your work is in Microsoft apps, and the add-on cost stacks on your existing licenses.

## Gemini in Google Workspace: Best if Your Business Runs on Google

Google has folded Gemini into Workspace plans rather than selling it as a separate add-on, so Docs, Sheets, Slides, Meet, and Gmail include AI features. Google's pricing page lists Business Standard at $14 per user per month, with introductory discounts for new customers, and says it includes Gemini across Gmail, Docs, Meet, and other apps.

The limit: it is strongest inside Google apps, and plan tiers change what you get. Confirm with Google before budgeting.

## Glean: Best for Searching Across Company Knowledge

Glean describes an AI platform for work that unifies enterprise search, assistants, and agents on your company's context, with a security layer called Glean Protect. It suits larger organizations whose knowledge is spread across many apps.

The limit: pricing is not published and the site points to a demo, so it is a bigger purchase than a seat-based chat tool.

## Lindy: Best for Building a Custom Workflow Agent

Lindy is an AI teammate that works in Slack. It manages inboxes, drafts replies, schedules and records meetings, and runs scheduled routines across 1,500+ integrations. Plus is $29.99 per user per month, Pro is $99.99 with computer use, and Max is $199.99. Its site lists SOC 2, GDPR, and HIPAA (Enterprise with a signed BAA).

The limit: someone has to design and maintain the workflows, and usage is metered in credits.

## Fyxer: Best Executive-Assistant Style Help With Email and Meetings

Fyxer organizes your inbox, drafts replies, records meetings, and drafts follow-ups. It connects to Gmail, Outlook, and the major meeting tools. There is a free plan, Pro at $37 per person per month billed annually, and Team at $64.

The limit: it covers email and meetings rather than every business task, and its credit-based pricing can add up with heavy use. See our [best AI executive assistants](https://openassistant.us/blog/best-ai-executive-assistants-2026) roundup.

## Town: Best New Always-On Assistant With Team Plans

Town gives each person an assistant (a "Townie") that learns how they work and acts proactively across email, calendar, Slack, and docs. It has its own @town.com email address, works in Slack, WhatsApp, and Telegram, and ships routines such as inbox triage, meeting briefings, and contact dossiers. Town announced a $55M Series A in June 2026. On the work-readiness side, it lists SOC 2 Type II, AI training off by default (on only with explicit opt-in), approval required for actions by default, and a full audit log. It has team plans with pooled credits and shared routines.

The limits: pricing is credit-metered, which is hard to predict, and Starter is billed monthly while higher tiers are billed annually, so check the credit allowance before budgeting. Reviewers also flag prompt-injection risk for any agent that reads an inbox. We did not find SSO, and the retention period is not published.

## OpenAI Dots: Watch It if Your Team Lives in ChatGPT, Slack, or Teams

OpenAI announced Dots on September 29, 2026: always-on personal agents inside ChatGPT, each with its own cloud computer, reachable in Slack and Microsoft Teams, with 4,000+ app plugins. Per SiliconANGLE's report, it is rolling out to ChatGPT Pro and Business Premium in eligible markets, Pro excludes the EEA, Switzerland, and the UK at launch, and Enterprise, Edu, and Healthcare are in a beta that needs workspace admin enablement. The first dot is included in the plan. Actions that touch accounts or share data go through auto-review, and users can set custom rules to allow, block, or require approval.

The limits: availability is staged, one dot per user at launch, extra-dot pricing is not published, texting is described as arriving later, and we did not find a published phone number or email identity or training defaults for Dots. OpenAI's own pages blocked our fetch, so this rests on press reports and search excerpts.

## Microsoft Autopilot (Formerly Scout): For Microsoft 365 Shops That Can Join a Preview

Microsoft announced Scout in June 2026 and renamed it Autopilot on September 25, 2026. Microsoft's September 25 post says it lives in your tenant with its own identity, memory, computer, and workspace, and that colleagues can @mention it with permissions, audit, and governance behind it. Its docs say it works with Outlook, Teams, OneDrive, and SharePoint, asks for approval before sensitive actions such as sending email, and tracks sensitivity labels on content it accesses.

The limits: it is in private preview, enrollment needs Frontier program access, admin attestation, Intune policy, and a GitHub Copilot seat, and the docs warn some data can route through third-party inference paths. Usage is billed through a GitHub account per the docs, with amounts not published. It is for organizations already on Microsoft 365, not a general-availability product yet.

## OpenAssistant: Best for Work That Involves Other People

We build OpenAssistant, so weigh this entry accordingly. It is an executive assistant with its own name, phone number, and email (or one on your company domain). It handles scheduling across many calendars, multi-person email threads, follow-ups, hand-offs and approvals, shared tasks, and plain-English workflows that run on demand, on a schedule, or on a trigger, over calls, iMessage, SMS, WhatsApp, and email. See the [teams page](https://openassistant.us/teams) and the [product page](https://openassistant.us/product).

It is in private beta, so you request access. It does not replace a company-wide chat assistant or enterprise search, and many businesses will pair it with one.

## Privacy and Data Handling: Questions to Ask Before You Roll Out

This is general information, not legal or compliance advice. An assistant that reads email, files, and calls touches sensitive data, so check the terms for each tool.

- **Training:** is your content used to train models by default? Several business plans say no, but confirm in writing.
- **Access:** does the assistant respect existing permissions, and can admins control connectors?
- **Certifications:** ask for current reports such as SOC 2, and for HIPAA or GDPR terms if you need them.
- **Identity controls:** look for SSO, role-based access, and audit logs at your plan level.
- **Recordings:** if the tool records meetings or calls, check consent rules where you and your participants are located.

Our guide to [how to know if an AI tool is safe](https://openassistant.us/blog/how-to-know-if-an-ai-tool-is-safe) goes deeper, and the OpenAssistant [Trust Center](https://openassistant.us/trust) shows how one vendor documents its answers.

## How to Choose an AI Assistant for Work

- **Small business owner on a budget:** start with the AI already in your Microsoft 365 or Google Workspace, or a $20 seat of ChatGPT or Claude. See [AI tools for small business owners](https://openassistant.us/blog/best-ai-tools-for-small-business-owners).
- **Growing team with scattered knowledge:** add Glean when search across apps is the pain.
- **Repeatable processes:** Lindy, if you have someone to build and tune them.
- **An overloaded executive or founder:** Fyxer or OpenAssistant. See [AI tools for startup founders](https://openassistant.us/blog/best-ai-tools-for-startup-founders).
- **Regulated data:** shortlist by certifications and contract terms first, features second.

Perplexity Computer is another agent aimed at work: a cloud agent that runs multi-step research and file tasks, with an Enterprise version offering audit logs, admin permissions, and no training on customer data. Perplexity's pages blocked our check, so confirm Enterprise pricing and credit limits with the vendor. Poke, Instinct, Meta Muse, and similar consumer agents are better treated as personal tools unless your security team approves them.

For more on options beyond one chatbot, read [AI beyond ChatGPT for business](https://openassistant.us/blog/ai-beyond-chatgpt-for-business).

## Frequently asked questions

### What is the best AI assistant for business?

It depends on your stack. Copilot suits Microsoft 365 teams, Gemini suits Google Workspace, and ChatGPT Business or Claude Team work as general-purpose assistants. Glean, Lindy, Fyxer, and OpenAssistant cover search, workflows, email, and coordination.

### What is the best AI assistant for work?

For most teams, the assistant built into the suite they already use, plus one general-purpose tool such as ChatGPT Business or Claude Team. Add specialized tools only for a specific pain.

### What is the best AI assistant for small business owners?

Start inexpensively: the AI included in your existing Google Workspace or Microsoft 365, or a $20 per seat plan from ChatGPT or Claude. Add an email and meeting assistant like Fyxer if your inbox is the bottleneck.

### Is it safe to use an AI assistant with company data?

It can be, if you pick a business plan with clear terms. Check whether your data trains models, what certifications exist, and what admin controls you get.

### Can an AI assistant replace an employee?

It can take over repetitive tasks such as drafting, scheduling, and follow-ups. Judgment, relationships, and accountability still need people.

### Which new AI agents can a business actually use in 2026?

Town is available now with team plans, SOC 2 Type II, and approvals by default. OpenAI Dots is rolling out to eligible Pro and Business Premium plans, and Microsoft Autopilot is in private preview, so check availability for your region and plan first.

### Is Microsoft Scout the same as Autopilot?

Yes. Microsoft announced Scout in June 2026 and renamed it Autopilot on September 25, 2026. It is in private preview and needs admin enrollment.

## Sources

- [Claude pricing](https://claude.com/pricing)
- [ChatGPT for Work pricing (third party)](https://www.eesel.ai/blog/chatgpt-work-pricing)
- [Microsoft 365 Copilot for business](https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/microsoft-365-copilot/business)
- [Google Workspace pricing](https://workspace.google.com/pricing)
- [Copilot pricing 2026 (third party)](https://eesel.ai/blog/copilot-pricing)
- [Gemini Workspace pricing 2026 (third party)](https://eesel.ai/blog/gemini-workspace-pricing)
- [ChatGPT Business pricing (OpenAI help center)](https://help.openai.com/en/articles/8792536)
- [Glean platform overview](https://www.glean.com/product/overview)
- [Lindy pricing](https://www.lindy.ai/pricing)
- [Fyxer](https://fyxer.com)
- [Fyxer pricing](https://fyxer.com/pricing)
- [Town pricing](https://www.town.com/pricing)
- [Town trust and security](https://www.town.com/trust)
- [Town Series A announcement](https://www.town.com/press/series-a)
- [SiliconANGLE: OpenAI launches Dots](https://siliconangle.com/2026/09/29/openai-launches-dots-always-on-ai-agents-in-chatgpt-with-their-own-cloud-computers/)
- [Microsoft: Introducing the new Copilot with Autopilot](https://blogs.microsoft.com/blog/2026/09/25/introducing-the-new-copilot-with-home-code-and-autopilot/)
- [Microsoft Learn: Scout admin access overview](https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/microsoft-scout/admin-access-overview)

Facts last verified 2026-10-03.

## More comparisons

- [Best AI Assistants You Can Text (iMessage, WhatsApp, SMS) in 2026](https://openassistant.us/blog/best-ai-assistants-you-can-text)
- [Town AI Assistant Review (2026): Pricing, Features, and Alternatives](https://openassistant.us/blog/town-ai-assistant-review)
- [Best AI Executive Assistants in 2026 (Compared)](https://openassistant.us/blog/best-ai-executive-assistants-2026)
- [Best AI Tools for Operations Leaders in 2026](https://openassistant.us/blog/best-ai-tools-for-operations-leaders)
- [Best AI Tools for Small Business Owners in 2026](https://openassistant.us/blog/best-ai-tools-for-small-business-owners)
- [Best AI Personal Assistants and Agents in 2026, Compared](https://openassistant.us/blog/best-ai-personal-assistants-2026)

## If your work involves other people

OpenAssistant is an executive assistant for teams, with its own phone number and email. Read how it compares:

- [What OpenAssistant does](https://openassistant.us/product)
- [OpenAssistant solutions by role](https://openassistant.us/solutions)

## Keep reading

**Guides**

- [Best AI Executive Assistants in 2026 (Compared)](https://openassistant.us/blog/best-ai-executive-assistants-2026)
- [Best AI Assistants You Can Text (iMessage, WhatsApp, SMS) in 2026](https://openassistant.us/blog/best-ai-assistants-you-can-text)
- [Best AI Assistants That Make Phone Calls for You (2026)](https://openassistant.us/blog/ai-assistants-that-make-phone-calls)
- [How to Use AI as an Executive Assistant (Step by Step)](https://openassistant.us/blog/how-to-use-ai-as-an-executive-assistant)
- [How to Know If an AI Tool Is Safe to Use in 2026](https://openassistant.us/blog/how-to-know-if-an-ai-tool-is-safe)
- [How to Use AI at Work: 10 Practical Ways in 2026](https://openassistant.us/blog/how-to-use-ai-at-work)
- [How Businesses Can Use AI Beyond ChatGPT in 2026](https://openassistant.us/blog/ai-beyond-chatgpt-for-business)
- [20 Tasks You Can Automate With AI at Work in 2026](https://openassistant.us/blog/tasks-to-automate-with-ai)
- [9 Best AI Calendar Assistants for 2026](https://openassistant.us/blog/best-ai-calendar-assistants)
- [7 Best AI Email Assistants for 2026](https://openassistant.us/blog/best-ai-email-assistants)

**Product pages**

- [AI executive assistant](https://openassistant.us/ai-executive-assistant)
- [Solutions](https://openassistant.us/solutions)
- [Product](https://openassistant.us/product)
- [OpenAssistant for teams](https://openassistant.us/teams)
- [AI scheduling assistant](https://openassistant.us/ai-scheduling-assistant)
- [AI email assistant](https://openassistant.us/ai-email-assistant)
- [AI meeting prep and daily agenda](https://openassistant.us/ai-meeting-prep)
- [Pricing](https://openassistant.us/pricing)
- [Trust Center](https://openassistant.us/trust)