Two Companies Offering Unified Search
December 9, 2014
I am confused. What exactly differentiates some of the vendors offering “unified” search? Another question is, “Are these many functions explicitly designed to deliver outputs that reflect real time content analytics on collected text, images, and videos?
I noted this Sinequa diagram on Twitter (http://bit.ly/12IXmnh):
A day ago I was preparing a short report for a client and came across this diagram for the Attivio active intelligence engine which delivers unified access:
The similarities are quite interesting. What came first, keyword search or the repositioning of search as an application that performs is like a giant Microsoft Office solution?
How do these two companies compare to a next generation information access system (NGIAs)? I see three differences:
- An NGIA system makes search a utility, not a core function or a principal plank in the platform
- The outputs of an NGIA system are designed to make or to trigger a tactical or strategic decision; for example, the output of an NGIA system goes into a system controlling a manufacturing robot
- The purpose of the NGIA system is to deliver a solution that pivots on predictive analytics.
I conclude, therefore, that neither Sinequa nor Attivio are NGIA systems at this time. The companies could engineer their search oriented approach toward an NGIA approach. Attivio has new management to help facilitate this important shift. Sinequa, according to a mid tier consulting firm, is one of the Big Dogs in information processing.
It will be interesting to see how search-centric vendors adapt to the next generation information access market. In my forthcoming monograph on this topic, I explore the substantive differences between search-centric “we do it all” systems and the forward looking NGIA system vendors.
Stephen E Arnold, December 9, 2014
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