Cloud storage plus an assistant
Thaw vs Google Drive with Gemini
People who already keep a "Documents" folder in Drive and can ask Gemini about it.
A Drive folder plus Gemini can answer "what is my deductible" over a pile of PDFs, and that is real. What it cannot do is notice that the pile is missing this year's registration, that the lease needs notice by a date, or that three of the files are the same bill. Drive stores; it does not file.
Side by side
| Thaw | Google Drive | |
|---|---|---|
| How paper gets in | Email-in address per family or business, scanner-to-email, browser upload, folder import, Evernote and paperless-ngx imports. Dropbox and Drive folder watch next. | Upload, the Drive app, or a scan from the mobile app. Drive can also be Thaw's inbox: ScanSnap-style scanners deliver to it, and Thaw will watch the folder. |
| Filing | Every document is read once: category, type, title, facts with roles, the people & things it concerns, every date. Uncertain reads are flagged, never queued. | Folders and names you choose. Gemini can summarize a file; it does not file it. |
| Answers | Grounded in your documents, with the page cited, and it says when nothing on file answers. | Gemini answers over selected files or a folder; citations vary. |
| Dates and deadlines | Every renewal, expiry, due date and notice period becomes an item with what happens if missed and what to do, from the document itself. Resolved by the next document. | None from documents. Calendar is separate. |
| What is missing | Knows what a person, vehicle, property, pet or business should have on file; lists what is missing, lapsed, expired or duplicated, worst first, with where to get it. | None. |
| Security posture | Per-document keys wrapped by per-account keys wrapped by a KMS master key. Identifiers encrypted with a blind index and redacted from the search index. Hash-chained audit log. Crypto-shred on delete. | Google-managed encryption; content indexed and available to Google's features per your settings. |
| Price | Free tier, then from $8 a month. | Often already paid for through Google One or Workspace. |
Stay with Google Drive if
- You only need storage and an occasional question.
- Your documents are few and you know where they are.
Move to Thaw if
- You want the checkup and Up next, not a folder.
- You keep paper for a household or business with real deadlines.
Moving over
Keep the Drive folder. Point a Thaw import at it (folder watch arrives next milestone; a ZIP download works today) and let both live: Drive stores, Thaw understands.
Point it at the pile and walk away.
Early access is open to a small group of households and owner-run businesses. Tell us a little about your paper and we will send an invitation.