> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.speckle.systems/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

> ## Agent Instructions
> These docs contain multiple Speckle product experiences. For Speckle 2026.9, prefer /next/ pages for the topics and changes they cover. The navigation label Current does not override this version-specific precedence.
> Coverage under /next/ is incremental. Use Current documentation for unchanged topics and when a /next/ page says coverage is unavailable or explicitly refers you to Current. Do not infer a feature was removed from a missing page.
> Read the page-specific documentation status, applicability, affected guidance and replacement links in agent-only content. Impacted, changed and superseded apply only to the stated scope; they do not mean the entire feature is deprecated. Historical connector guides apply only to the legacy connector described.
> Match guidance to the customer's deployment version, model data format and connector. Respect plan, permission and compatibility restrictions. If an unknown version or data format changes the answer, ask a focused clarification; do not infer deployment version from the date alone.

# Benchmark a project against your portfolio with Speckle Intelligence

> Pin a library of past-project figures as Knowledge so Chat can tell you how the project you're looking at compares, instead of exporting each project by hand to compare them.

Documentation set: Speckle 2026.9. Status: current. Authority: canonical for this version and the coverage on this page.

Applies to version 2026.9, from 2026-09; this is not a rollout date for every deployment.

Authoritative Speckle 2026.9 documentation for the topic covered here. For Speckle 2026.9, prefer this page over conflicting earlier guidance. Follow linked Current documentation for unchanged topics and where this page says coverage is not yet available. Respect data-format, deployment, plan, permission, and compatibility limitations stated in the page.

<Note>
  This is 2026.9 documentation. Coverage here is incremental: a page exists only where 2026.9
  differs or is newly documented. For any other topic, switch to **Current** (2026.8 and earlier) in
  the version selector.
</Note>

Chat answers questions about one project at a time — see [Ask questions about your models with
Speckle Intelligence](/next/analytics/intelligence#where-to-ask). It is not a portal onto every
project in the workspace. So "how does this compare to our past work" is not something Chat can
answer from the live model alone — it needs a benchmark to compare against. This page pins that
benchmark as Knowledge so the comparison happens inside the conversation you're already having,
instead of a separate export-and-compare step.

<Note>
  Speckle Intelligence Chat is available when your workspace plan includes it. On a self-hosted
  server, it is available only on Speckle Enterprise Server. For deployment setup, see [Enterprise
  license — Intelligence](/developers/server/deployment/enterprise-license#optional-intelligence).
</Note>

<Info>
  This pins a static benchmark library for comparison inside Chat. To watch several **live**
  projects side by side in one view instead — combined totals or a difference view, updating as
  those projects change — use [Perform portfolio
  analysis](/analytics/dashboards/common-workflows#perform-portfolio-analysis) in Dashboards.
</Info>

## What this workflow does

* **Maintain a benchmark library** — a spreadsheet or warehouse table of figures from past
  projects (steel tonnage, embodied carbon, cost per m², whatever your team tracks).
* **Ask in project scope** — Chat reads the project you have open plus the pinned library, and
  compares the two.
* **Flag outliers** — ask for what's unusual, not just the raw comparison.
* **Keep the library current** — point Chat at a live warehouse table instead of a static file if
  the benchmark should update as finance or a data team refreshes it.

## Walkthrough

<Steps>
  <Step title="Build the benchmark library">
    Export or maintain a table of the metric you want to benchmark — one row per past project,
    with the figure your team already tracks (steel tonnage, embodied carbon per m², cost per
    unit). A spreadsheet is fine to start; a Databricks, Snowflake, or Microsoft Fabric table keeps
    it current without re-uploading.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Pin it as Knowledge on a skill">
    Create a skill and pin the library as
    [Knowledge](/next/analytics/intelligence-skills#what-you-can-attach). Tell the skill, in your
    own language, which column is which project and which is the metric, and how you want the
    comparison framed — a ratio, a percentile, or a plain "higher/lower than average". See [Reuse
    organisation playbooks with Intelligence skills](/next/analytics/intelligence-skills).
  </Step>

  <Step title="Ask the comparison">
    Open the project you want to check, arm the skill, and ask:

    > How does this project compare to our past hospital projects on steel tonnage?

    Intelligence reads the current project's data plus the pinned library and answers within that
    one conversation — you don't export either side by hand.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Ask for the outlier read, not just the number">
    Keep going:

    > Is that difference something worth flagging?

    Because the comparison basis is the library you pinned — not a guess — Intelligence can say
    where this project sits against it, and say so in the vocabulary your skill defined.
  </Step>
</Steps>

## When you need several live projects in one view

A pinned library is a snapshot — accurate as of when you last updated it. If you want combined
totals or a difference view across several **live** projects that stays current as those projects
change, that is a Dashboards job: [Perform portfolio
analysis](/analytics/dashboards/common-workflows#perform-portfolio-analysis) adds a Model Viewer
per project and uses **Aggregate** or **Compare** mode across them.

## FAQ

<AccordionGroup>
  <Accordion title="Can Chat compare live projects to each other directly, without a pinned library?">
    Not in one conversation — Chat answers about the project you have open, not several projects at
    once. Pin a benchmark library so the comparison basis travels with the skill, or use [Perform
    portfolio analysis](/analytics/dashboards/common-workflows#perform-portfolio-analysis) in
    Dashboards when you want several live projects in one view instead.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="How fresh does the benchmark library need to be?">
    As fresh as you keep it. A static spreadsheet is a snapshot as of upload. Point the skill's
    Knowledge at a live warehouse table instead if the benchmark should update automatically.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Does this need a version in the new 2026.9 data format?">
    The current project does. Comparing versions or reading model relationships needs the new data
    format. See [Speckle's data model is changing](/workspaces/data-model-migration).
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Can I share this comparison with people who don't have Chat access?">
    Save the conversation as a [Report](/next/analytics/reports) and share it — viewing a saved
    report does not need the viewer to run their own Chat turn.
  </Accordion>
</AccordionGroup>

## See also

* [Ask questions about your models with Speckle Intelligence](/next/analytics/intelligence)
* [Reuse organisation playbooks with Intelligence skills](/next/analytics/intelligence-skills)
* [Create and share Intelligence Reports](/next/analytics/reports)
* [Perform portfolio analysis](/analytics/dashboards/common-workflows#perform-portfolio-analysis)
  — the live, multi-project dashboard route