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Using the Chat Interface

Start a conversation with an AI assistant and get answers grounded in your data.

Where to find it​

  • Assistant chat: /assistants/<assistant-id>
  • Home page quick chat: / (routes to the default assistant)

Main chat flow​

When you open an assistant, the chat starts empty with a heading, optional starter question chips, and the input bar at the bottom.

Chat empty state showing starter question chips and input bar
  1. Click a starter question chip to send it instantly, or type your own message in the input bar.
Message typed in the chat input, ready to send
  1. Press Enter or click Send.
  2. The assistant processes your message through its Workflow and returns a response.

After a response:

  • A collapsible Sources section appears below the response if the assistant has indexed document sources and Show Quote is enabled.
  • Follow-up question chips appear below the response if Suggest Follow-up Questions is enabled.
  • A Listen button (text-to-speech) appears on each response if Text to Speech is enabled.
Assistant response with a Sources section and follow-up question chips

Source quotes​

When an assistant is connected to indexed document sources and Show Quote is enabled, a Sources N button appears below each response. Expanding it shows:

  • The source document path
  • Relevance score (%)
  • The quoted excerpt used to generate the answer
Sources panel expanded showing document path, relevance score, and quoted text

Attaching files​

  1. Click the paperclip icon in the chat input bar.
  2. Select a file from your device — a preview appears in the input area.
  3. Add a message (optional) and click Send.

The file is uploaded and processed before the message reaches the assistant.

Starting a new conversation​

Click New Thread to clear the chat and start a fresh session. Starter questions and the assistant heading reappear.

note

Chat history is stored server-side. Previous conversations are preserved on page reload — only New Thread starts fresh.

Empty chat state​

When you open an assistant before sending any messages, the empty state shows:

New chat empty state — assistant avatar, 'How can I assist you today?' heading, starter chips, and disabled Send button
  • The assistant avatar or brand logo
  • Heading: "How can I assist you today?" (in brand red)
  • Up to 3 starter question chips from the assistant configuration
  • Chat input with placeholder: "Type your prompt here…"
  • Send button disabled (no text in input)

Searching past conversations​

Use the search field in the chat sidebar to filter your conversation history. Type a query to filter by conversation title.

Chat sidebar with search query entered and no matching conversations — list area is blank
note

If no conversations match the search, the sidebar list shows blank with no message — it does not display "no results found". Clearing the search field restores all conversations.

Feature settings​

Each assistant has a set of toggles that control what appears in the chat UI. These are configured in the assistant editor.

SettingDefaultEffect
Show QuoteOnSource citations shown below responses
Suggest Follow-up QuestionsOn2–4 follow-up chips appear after each response
Allow File AttachmentsOnPaperclip icon visible in the chat input bar
Text to SpeechOnListen button available on each response
Timeout360 sMaximum time to wait for an LLM response

Business rules​

  • Empty message: the Send button is disabled until the input contains text.
  • Message length: messages of 500+ characters are accepted.
  • Response timeout: 360 seconds by default; configurable per assistant.
  • Chat history: persisted server-side and restored on page reload.