Gong vs Otter

Gong used to be a meeting recorder. It would record sales calls, transcribe them, and let managers review what happened. But then with the rise of AI they pivoted.

Now recording is just the input layer. Gong captures calls, emails, and meetings, then builds a data model around your deals and customer interactions. On top of that, it runs analysis, surfaces risks, and suggests what to do next.

So instead of being a tool that tells you "here’s your call," it’s trying to tell you "this deal is slipping, here’s why, and here’s how to fix it."

The simplest way to think about it now is: Gong is an AI layer on top of your sales process, and recording is just how it gets the data.

Otter was one of the original note takers. It would transcribe your calls and meetings live, and we used it for years before the whole AI notetaker boom.

We mostly found it more useful for personal use than business use. It was great for things like recording doctor's appointments or casual conversations, since you could just hit record and drop your phone in your pocket.

Now there are a lot more competitors on the market, and Otter has adapted by adding more AI-powered note-taking features. But we still view it as a simple tool for transcribing conversations, not quite a tool we'd bring into the business.