Zoho Unveils Vani, An AI-Powered Visual Platform Set To Rival Google Workspace: Here's How It Works

Zoho has introduced Vani, its latest sub-brand that's not just another tool but a visual-first ecosystem aimed to rival softwares like Google Workspace for small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs). Priced accessibly and packed with AI smarts, Vani promises to consolidate fragmented workflows into one infinite digital canvas, where teams can ideate, plan, and execute without ever leaving the platform.

Vani pricing and availability

Talking first about the pricing, Vani comes in a free-tier model for small teams and individuals, and for agencies and growing companies, the pricing starts at Rs. 240 per teammate per month. Accessibility is key: Vani is currently desktop- and browser-ready, with a mobile app on the horizon to keep remote workers connected on the go.

Vani new features

At its core, Vani operates on an innovative "Space and Zone" model that redefines how teams collaborate in real time. A 'Space' acts as the overarching infinite canvas for an entire project, providing a bird's-eye view of all activities. Within this, teams create 'Zones' - sub-canvases that segment work by function, phase, or contributor, allowing parallel brainstorming without chaos. For instance, marketing might sketch a social media strategy in one Zone while engineering diagrams a network flow in another, all while staying synced to the bigger picture. This structure fosters isolation for focused deep dives and seamless merging of ideas when ready, turning static documents into dynamic, interactive hubs.

Vani's toolkit is designed for versatility, supporting whiteboarding, mind mapping, flowcharting, diagramming, and even native video calling—all on the same canvas to eliminate app-switching. Users start with a robust library of ready-made templates and kits for everything from strategy sessions and project planning to social media calendars and design diagrams, accelerating setup and ensuring consistency. Mind mapping tools let teams quickly capture, organize, and connect raw ideas visually, evolving them into structured plans with drag-and-drop ease.

What sets Vani apart is its baked-in AI, which acts as an intelligent co-pilot without the privacy pitfalls of big tech. AI generates content on the fly—like instant flowcharts or mind maps from text prompts—and delivers smart summaries of discussions across Zones, pulling insights from shapes, frames, and objects to highlight key takeaways. Importantly, Zoho's AI models are built with user privacy in mind: they're not trained on customer data, retain no personal info, and come at no extra cost, aligning with the company's no-ads, self-hosted data centers ethos.

Collaboration gets a boost from built-in video meetings that embed directly into the canvas, supporting real-time discussions with screen sharing and recording for async catch-ups—no Zoom logins required. Deep integrations with the Zoho suite (think Docs, Sheets, and CRM) and third-party apps pull in live data, workflows, and files, making Vani a central command center for end-to-end projects.