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AI Agents only reply on Chat threads explicitly assigned to them (or auto-assigned via workspace default). This doc covers assignment, handoff, and human takeover. Primary path: Chat (/chat) → open thread → Recipient panel → Assigned to

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Quick reference

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Assignee types in Chat

Dropdown order: AI Agents → Teams → Users (with divider) → Unassigned button. Same selector appears in:
  • Recipient panel (desktop right column)
  • Conversation header (compact mobile assignee control)
Deep dive: Assignments & teams

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Step-by-step: assign an AI Agent

  1. Open Chat → /chat
  2. Click the customer thread
  3. Open Recipient panel (right side on desktop)
  4. Find Assigned to
  5. Open dropdown → search or scroll to AI Agent (brain icon)
  6. Select agent — e.g. Night Support Bot
Customer’s next inbound message triggers the bot (after response delay).

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When the bot replies

All must be true: Flow:

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Human takeover

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Manual takeover (most common)

Assign thread to a user (yourself or teammate):
  • Bot stops sending to customer
  • Thread marked human takeover when an AI agent was assigned
  • Customer sees seamless human reply next

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Unassign

Assigned to → Unassigned:
  • Clears user, team, and AI agent
  • Clears handover state

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Assign to team

Picking a team clears AI assignment — queue handles it as human workflow.

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Handover & escalation

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Via instructions & actions

Train the agent to:
  • Use Add comments for internal escalation notes
  • Use Assign to agent or team action instructions for routing
  • Say in instructions: “If you cannot help, tell the customer a human will follow up.”

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Keyword handover (backend)

Workspace can configure handover_triggers with a keywords list. When the bot’s generated reply contains a keyword, the system:
  1. Does not send that reply to the customer
  2. Sets thread to human takeover
  3. Adds an internal note with the would-be reply text
Dashboard form for handover keywords may not be exposed yet — escalation via instructions + manual assignment works today.

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Customer phrases (“speak to human”)

Include in Instructions: “If customer asks for a human, acknowledge and stop answering product questions.” Pair with Assign to team action rules.

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Default AI Agent (workspace)

Workspaces can set default_ai_agent_id so new threads auto-assign an active agent when:
  • No user, team, or AI assignee yet
  • Agent is Active
  • Not already in human takeover
Silent assignment — no welcome message until customer messages. Override: Always assign manually per thread in Chat. UI note: Default agent may be configured via workspace admin/API before a dedicated Settings screen ships. Co-Admin can reference the behavior; direct customers to Chat assignment for day-to-day control.

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AI Agent vs Generate Reply in the inbox

Use both: bot handles nights; humans use Generate Reply by day.

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Handoff patterns

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1. AI → Human (night → day)

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2. AI → Team (billing)

Bot adds label + internal comment → Assign to team Billing.

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3. AI qualifies → human closes

Sales agent collects size/color → assigns Sales team for payment.

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4. Emergency keyword

Instructions: “If emergency, tell them to call 911 and assign Urgent team.”

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Conversation states

Deleting an AI Agent unassigns all its threads and clears default workspace agent.

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Mobile Chat

Same assignment dropdown in conversation header — search users, teams, AI agents.

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Troubleshooting