What changed with Claude and what it means for your business
Imagine this: for months, you explain to an AI tool how your business works. Your tone of voice, your customers, your way of working. But every time you open a different version or module, you have to start from scratch. The context you built up? Gone.
Until recently, that was the reality for hundreds of thousands of Claude users. Information you shared in one application did not automatically carry over to another. Since 25 August 2026, Anthropic has changed that.
What exactly is changing with Claude?
Claude now has one shared memory across all its applications. What you told the chat version is now also known by the Cowork module, and vice versa. You no longer have to enter your company name, tone of voice, target audience or working instructions ten times over.
Users also have more control over what Claude remembers and what it does not. You can explicitly exclude sensitive information, a relevant step for anyone working with customer data.
That may sound technical, but for an SME, the impact is concrete:
- Your AI assistant now knows that you are a carpenter in Kortrijk with three employees, that your customers prefer a personal email to a standard form and that your invoices are always payable within 30 days. Without you having to explain it every time.
- That is a major improvement. The difference between a tool and a colleague who thinks along with you.
How do ChatGPT, Copilot and Gemini compare with Claude?
- ChatGPT (OpenAI) has had a memory option for some time, but for a long time it remained limited to the chat interface. Those using ChatGPT via Teams or other tools also often had to start with a blank slate. That is improving, but the integration is more complex.
- Microsoft Copilot is embedded in your Microsoft 365 environment and retains context through your documents, calendar and emails, but it does not ‘know’ who you are as a person or entrepreneur unless that information is contained in those files. Strong for those who work entirely within the Microsoft ecosystem. Less flexible outside those boundaries.
- Google Gemini is evolving rapidly and integrates with Google Workspace, but its memory function is still inconsistent and far less explicitly manageable than what Claude is now rolling out.
Conclusion
With this update, Claude is once again doing something the others have not yet fully achieved: a cross-platform memory that users can consciously control. For now, that gives Claude an advantage. There is no guarantee that this will still be the case in six months, but today it is.
What does this mean for you as an SME manager?
- If you already use Claude: make sure you set up your profile and work context properly now. You will benefit from the update immediately.
- If you do not yet use Claude: this is a good time to try it. The barrier of ‘I always have to explain to the AI who I am again’ disappears.
- And if you are still unsure which AI tool is right for you: the choice depends heavily on the software you already use. Deeply embedded in Microsoft 365? Then Copilot is a logical choice. Do you also work outside that environment? Then it is worth comparing Claude and ChatGPT.
The most important advice remains the same as always: start somewhere and start small. Automate one task. One type of email. One weekly report. The tool you start using today will already be smarter tomorrow than the tool you plan to ‘take a look at’ next week.
Wondering which AI tool best suits your business and the way you work? Contact our experts. We will be happy to help you turn the possibilities into concrete opportunities for your organisation.