A European alternative to ChatGPT, for work

Why look for an alternative to ChatGPT

The question often comes from a business owner, a data protection officer, or a legal team. Three reasons come up.

• Knowing where the data is processed: in Europe, in Switzerland, or by a US vendor.
• Being sure conversations are not used to train the AI, without relying on a setting everyone has to remember to turn off.
• Paying a European vendor in euros, with a contract and support close to home.

That does not mean ChatGPT is off limits: on the Business and Enterprise plans, OpenAI does not use your data to train its models by default. The real question is your data, not the tool’s nationality. The page AI and GDPR at work sets out the framework.

The European assistants, side by side

What each vendor says about your data, from Nova’s tool pages, checked on October 12, 2026 (Lumo: October 3) on the vendors’ pages. Euro prices are those listed in France.

Switzerland is not in the European Union. Infomaniak says it complies with the GDPR and with Swiss data protection law. These rows report what the vendors write; they do not replace the advice of your data protection officer.

Which one for which need

Replacing ChatGPT day to day

Mistral Vibe comes closest: it drafts, searches the web, reads your files, analyzes an Excel spreadsheet and, if you allow it, reads your emails and calendar (Gmail, Outlook, Google Calendar, SharePoint). It always asks for your approval before sending an email. On a computer it runs in the browser, and on your phone in an app. Start for free; Pro makes sense if the limits stop you several times a week.

Confidential work: HR, finance, legal

Lumo, from the maker of Proton Mail, is Nova’s pick for this need: your conversations are encrypted, Proton cannot read them, and they are not used for training. Euria, from Infomaniak, is free, processed only in Switzerland, and also transcribes your audio recordings. Both have a mode that keeps no trace of the conversation.

Keeping GPT, Claude, and Gemini, with a single European subscription

Mammouth brings together models from several vendors in one window, and sends your question to another model in one click so you can compare. It is a French subscription, not a French AI: your requests go to OpenAI, Anthropic, or Google, without your identity.

Equipping a whole team

Langdock gives the company a single assistant, hosted in the European Union: each person picks the model that answers (OpenAI, Anthropic, Google, Mistral), and the admin decides which models are allowed. Mistral Vibe also has a Team plan, and an Enterprise plan that can run on your own servers. For the budget, see the cost of AI for business.

What you give up compared with ChatGPT

Better to know before you switch a whole team.

• Lumo and Euria run on open models. For a long or highly specialized analysis, compare their answer with another assistant before relying on it.
• Mistral Vibe has no Mac or Windows app, and does not answer out loud: the microphone is for dictating your request.
• Mammouth does not include every feature of the ChatGPT, Claude, or Gemini apps, and switches to a lighter model once your quota is reached.
• The free limits of Vibe, Euria, and Lumo are not published as numbers: you discover them as you go.

Three questions to ask before you choose

1. Where are my requests processed? By the vendor itself, or by an AI provider it passes them on to?
2. Are they used to train the AI? By default, or only if I fail to turn off a setting? In Vibe, on the free plan: on the web, admin.mistral.ai, “Vibe,” “Privacy,” then turn off “Allow your interactions to be used to train our models.”
3. How long are they kept, and can I delete them? Euria, Lumo, and Vibe offer a temporary mode for a sensitive question.

Even with a European assistant, remove the names and numbers the request does not need. The guide what not to share with AI at work gives the simple rule.

The test to run before you switch

1. Take a real task from this week, with no sensitive data: meeting notes to summarize, a tricky email, a spreadsheet to analyze.
2. Write a single prompt, with the reader, the expected result, and the format. See how to write a good prompt.
3. Give it to ChatGPT and to the alternative you picked, on the free version of each.
4. Keep the one that needs the fewest corrections, then check with your data protection officer which plan the team should get.

What Nova brings

Nova is subscription software that shows what these tools do in your job: small business owner, data protection officer, in-house counsel, or HR manager. You will find the up-to-date page for each assistant, with its check date, and demos to recreate step by step, prompt included. For business leaders: AI training for leaders. Try the interactive demo.

Frequently asked questions

What is the French alternative to ChatGPT?

Mistral Vibe, the assistant from the French company Mistral AI. It drafts, searches the web, reads your files and, if you allow it, your emails and calendar. It is free to start, and Mistral says its servers are in Europe. The Pro plan costs €14.99 per month excl. tax, price checked on October 12, 2026.

Does Mistral’s Le Chat still exist?

Yes, under another name: since spring 2026, Le Chat has been called Vibe. The address and the account stay the same. On phones, the app is called “Vibe by Mistral (ex-Le Chat).”

Is a European AI automatically GDPR compliant?

Nationality is not what matters; what the tool does with your data is. For example, on Mistral Vibe’s free plan, your conversations may be used to train the AI unless you opt out. And Mammouth, a French vendor, passes your requests on to US vendors. Have the tool and the plan approved by your data protection officer.

Which AI does not use my conversations for training?

Euria and Lumo do not, on any plan. Langdock says your data is never used for training. Mistral Vibe does not by default on Pro, Team, and Enterprise. Neither does ChatGPT on Business and Enterprise.

Is there a free European AI?

Yes. Mistral Vibe, Euria, and Lumo have a free plan, with limits the vendors do not publish as numbers. Euria is free on the web and on your phone, audio transcription included; Lumo Free keeps your conversations for 7 days. Mammouth and Langdock have no permanent free plan.

Can you get ChatGPT and Claude through a European service?

Yes, with Mammouth, a French vendor, or Langdock, a German vendor hosted in the European Union: you choose the model that answers. Your requests are then sent to the provider of that model. Both vendors say they are not used for training.

Sources

• Mistral pricing, Mistral AI
• Le Chat is now Vibe, Mistral AI, help center
• Privacy policy, Mistral AI
• How Infomaniak uses AI (in French), Infomaniak
• Euria (in French), Infomaniak
• Lumo privacy, Proton
• Lumo pricing, Proton
• Privacy with model providers, Mammouth
• Pricing, Langdock
• Security, Langdock

Go further

• Mistral Vibe: the full tool page, plans, and prices
• Euria: the full tool page
• Lumo: the full tool page
• Mammouth: the full tool page
• Langdock: the full tool page
• ChatGPT: the full tool page, plans, and prices
• AI and GDPR at work
• AI training for leaders
• What not to share with AI at work
• The cost of AI for business
• AI training for small business owners
• AI training for data protection officers
• AI training for in-house counsel
• AI training for HR managers
• All AI tools, by family