The alternative
Chatbase and ovellan both train an AI chatbot on your own content. The difference is EU hosting with a DPA, answers in your customers' own language, and more than just a widget: WhatsApp, a shared inbox, booking and order tracking.
A fair look
Chatbase is a popular US-based platform for building an AI chatbot that you train on your own website and documents, so it answers from that content and can cite its sources. It is designed as an embeddable AI agent that you drop onto your site with a snippet of code.
Chatbase is genuinely strong if you want a polished English AI widget live quickly, with a mature integration ecosystem and a large existing user base. Its core job, answering from your own content with citations, works well.
Side by side
| Feature | ovellan | Chatbase |
|---|---|---|
| Answers only from your own content, with sources | Yes, answers from your site and documents and cites its sources | Yes, this is Chatbase's core strength too |
| Honestly says it does not know | Yes, it says 'I don't know' instead of guessing | Generally yes, it is designed to stay grounded in your content |
| Hosting location | EU, in Germany (Hetzner) | US-based product, US-hosted by default |
| GDPR and downloadable DPA | GDPR-proof with a downloadable DPA, no training on your data | Offers a DPA, but data is processed in the US by default |
| Multilingual & localized | Answers naturally in every major European language | English-first, supports many languages |
| WhatsApp channel | Yes, built in alongside the website widget | Depends on plan, mainly via integrations |
| Shared inbox for human handover | Yes, a shared inbox where your team takes over live | Has handoff features, depends on plan and integrations |
| Appointment booking | Yes, the bot can book appointments | Typically via external integrations |
| Order tracking | Yes, built in for webshops | Typically via external integrations or custom actions |
| Pricing model | Per workspace, whole team included | Generally credit or message based, varies by plan |
Comparison reflects broad, public positioning. Chatbase is a trademark of its owner; ovellan is not affiliated with it.
Why teams choose ovellan
ovellan runs in Germany (Hetzner), is GDPR-proof and offers a downloadable data processing agreement, and it never trains on your data. Chatbase is a US-based product that is US-hosted by default, which is a real consideration for EU companies.
ovellan answers naturally in your customers' own language, with a fully localized experience, so replies read as if written by a local colleague. Chatbase is English-first, so other languages are possible but not the starting point.
ovellan is not only a website widget: it also handles WhatsApp, a shared inbox for smooth human handover, appointment booking and order tracking. Chatbase focuses on being a strong embeddable AI agent.
ovellan is priced per workspace, so your whole team is included without counting individual messages. Chatbase is generally credit or message based, so busy months can cost more.
If your audience is mainly English-speaking, you are comfortable with US hosting, and you want a focused, mature AI widget with a broad integration ecosystem, Chatbase is a solid choice. It is a strong option when a website AI agent is all you need and EU data residency is not a hard requirement.
Questions
Yes. Both train an AI chatbot on your own content and cite sources. ovellan adds EU hosting with a DPA, answers in your customers' own language, and channels beyond the widget such as WhatsApp, a shared inbox, booking and order tracking.
In the EU, in Germany (Hetzner). ovellan is GDPR-proof, offers a downloadable DPA and never trains on your data. Chatbase is a US-based product that is US-hosted by default.
Yes. That is exactly what Chatbase is built for, and it does it well. This is not unique to ovellan. The differences are hosting, language and operational breadth.
ovellan answers naturally in your customers' own language with a fully localized experience, so it reads like a local colleague. Chatbase supports many languages, but it is English-first by design.
In minutes. You add one line of code to your site, and ovellan learns from your own content right away. It is multilingual and does not train on your data.
An EU-hosted, GDPR-proof AI chatbot trained on your own content, live in minutes with one line of code.
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