AI tool privacy · Comparison
Otter vs Zoom AI Companion: how each handles your data
By David Michaelson, MS Last checked October 23, 2026
The short answer
Otter
Otter Enterprise workspaces are opted out of AI model training by default; on other plans, Otter trains its own AI on de-identified recordings and transcripts, and a separate setting decides whether people may review your conversations.
Zoom AI Companion
Zoom says it does not use your meeting audio, video, chat, screen sharing, or attachments to train its own or outside AI models; the bigger question for a team is who receives the meeting summaries.
For a team: compare the plan you would actually buy, not just the brand. The tables below show each plan’s answers, with sources.
Side by side
Every answer links to the vendor’s own page and shows the date we read it. Where we could not confirm an answer, the cell says so in plain words and links to the page we checked.
| Question | OtterAccounts other than Enterprise | OtterEnterprise | Zoom AI CompanionZoom Workplace accounts |
|---|---|---|---|
| Trains on your data by default? | Yes, in de-identified form. Otter’s privacy policy says it trains its own AI on de-identified audio recordings and on transcripts, which may contain personal information. The “Help improve Otter” setting separately controls whether Otter and its providers may access your conversations, including through human review. Read on October 23, 2026 Source: otter.ai | No, not by default. Otter says Enterprise workspaces are opted out of AI model training, and recordings, transcripts, and notes are not used to improve Otter’s global models or outside AI models. Read on October 23, 2026 Source: help.otter.ai | No. Zoom says it does not use your audio, video, chat, screen sharing, attachments, or other communications-like content to train Zoom’s or outside AI models. Read on October 23, 2026 Source: library.zoom.com |
| How long your data is kept | Otter keeps personal information as long as needed for the purposes in its policy, or as long as the law requires. Deleted conversations sit in the Trash for 30 days and are then permanently deleted. Read on October 23, 2026 Source: otter.ai | Enterprise admins can configure data retention policies, but the page we read does not give default periods. Page checked: help.otter.ai, October 23, 2026 | Zoom keeps content as long as needed for the uses in its Privacy Statement, unless the law requires longer. Admins can turn off and lock the meeting transcript setting, so no lasting transcript is kept for summaries. Read on October 23, 2026 Source: library.zoom.com |
| Who can see it | Only you and the people you choose to share with. Otter says its staff need your explicit consent before accessing a transcript or recording to troubleshoot. Read on October 23, 2026 Source: otter.ai | Admins can see conversation titles, not transcripts or audio, unless the owner shares them. Approved Enterprise customers can ask Otter to turn on Super Admin, which gives chosen admins view access to conversations across the workspace. Read on October 23, 2026 Source: help.otter.ai | The account owner can access meeting summaries. If the host enables sharing, participants get them by email and Zoom Chat, and anyone who receives a summary can save and share it. Read on October 23, 2026 Source: support.zoom.com |
| Where data is stored | Otter’s privacy policy names Amazon Web Services, based in the United States, as its cloud provider for compute and data storage. Read on October 23, 2026 Source: otter.ai | Otter’s privacy policy names Amazon Web Services, based in the United States, as its cloud provider for compute and data storage. Read on October 23, 2026 Source: otter.ai | Zoom processes and stores data based on your hosted data center region and the settings of the host, owner, or user. Read on October 23, 2026 Source: library.zoom.com |
| How to delete | Open the conversation, click the three-dot menu, and select Delete. It moves to the Trash for 30 days. To delete it at once, open Trash, click “Empty Trash Now,” then “Delete Forever.” Read on October 23, 2026 Source: help.otter.ai | Same steps as other plans, unless an admin has turned on “Disable Speech Deletion,” which stops everyone from permanently deleting recordings and transcripts. Read on October 23, 2026 Source: help.otter.ai | Only the host can delete a summary. In Zoom Chat, open the meeting’s group chat, click View Details on the summary, then click Delete. It cannot be restored. Read on October 23, 2026 Source: support.zoom.com |
Building your own approved tools list? The SafeStart Handbook includes one, with company accounts and safer privacy settings.