Help Center | tawk.to | Getting started with AI Assist

Getting started with AI Assist

The instructions below are for desktops and laptops only.

tawk.to’s AI Assist provides AI-powered tools that help your team offer fast, accurate support 24/7 across multiple channels.

Benefits at a glance

Offer quick, reliable answers 24/7 — even when your team is offline.
Improve response quality and speed using AI-powered suggestions (Smart Reply).
Reduce your team’s workload —automate repetitive tasks, brainstorm ideas, and streamline workflows with simple AI Commands.
Support multiple channels, including Live Chat, Tickets, Facebook Messenger, SMS, Telegram and WhatsApp.
Extend functionality with integrations — connect with your existing tools and platforms.
Scale support as your business grows without adding new staff.

This guide walks you through activating AI Assist, creating and customizing your AI agent, and best practices to ensure consistent, reliable performance.

Steps to activate AI Assist

1. Log in to tawk.to, and select the correct property.

2. Click Add-ons in the left navigation bar.

3. Click Get Started under AI Assist.

4. Switch the AI Assist toggle on.

On the AI Assist page, you can
- Monitor your Message Usage - this shows a real-time count of messages your AI agent sends in chats, tickets, Smart Replies, and AI Commands.
Learn more about message credits here: How to top up AI Assist message credits

- Upgrade your plan - click Upgrade at the top right corner (see Upgrade your AI Assist plan below)
Learn more about AI Assist plans here: AI Assist Plans and Subscriptions

After enabling AI Assist, create an AI agent following the steps in the next section.

Create an AI agent

1. Click Automation in the left navigation bar.

2. Click Try it now or Add your first agent.

3. This starts a conversational setup wizard to help you build your AI agent.

- Enter a description of the AI agent you need, or
- Choose a template

4. Now we need some information about your business.

- Enter your business website URL,
- Upload documents about your business, or
- Describe your business

5. The wizard will create a list of FAQs about your business. Edit the FAQs if needed and click Continue.

6. The wizard will create a persona for your AI agent. Edit the agent’s Name and Title if needed and click Continue.

7. Choose the agent’s avatar and click Continue.

8. The wizard will create a description of your business to train your AI agent. Edit the description if needed and click Continue.

9. The wizard will generate a base prompt. This will instruct your AI agent’s behaviour. Edit the base prompt if needed and click Continue.

10. Any tools or integrations connected to your tawk.to property will be listed here. Select the tools or integrations you want to use with your AI agent. Then, click Continue.

11. Choose the channels for your AI agent. Then, click Continue.

12. Your AI agent is now ready. You can test your new AI agent using the test widget in the lower right corner.

After creating, your new AI agent will appear in the Agents page. You can enable/disable the agent using the toggle switch.

Configure your AI agent

1. Click Agents in the left submenu.

2. Select your AI agent.

3. On the Instructions page, you can edit the base prompt. This tells the AI agent how to communicate and behave.

Your base prompt can include instructions on:

- How to greet customers
- What to say and not to say
- What tone of voice to use
- What information to include in your responses

Click Save after making your changes. You can always return to the default prompt by clicking Use default.

Learn more about the Base Prompt with these guides:
Getting started with the Base Prompt
Modifying the Base Prompt
Using Base Prompt to restrict AI Assist's responses
Using Base Prompt instructions for escalation

4. On the Persona page, you can edit

- The Alias and Position Title
- Your business description under Short Description

Click Save after making your changes.

5. The Knowledge page contains your AI agent’s data source. You can add FAQs, documentation, Knowledge Base articles, or product pages to guide how the AI agent responds.

Your AI agent relies on your data to deliver accurate, trustworthy answers. High-quality, up-to-date information leads to better results.

Learn more here: Understanding AI Assist’s Data Sources

6. On the Schedule page, you can choose when the AI agent should answer your customers (paid plans only).

7. Under Tools, you can connect your AI agent to a variety of platforms, expanding its ability to fetch data and perform actions for your customers. Click + Add. Select the integrations you want to add, or add a custom integration.

Learn more here:
How to set up a custom API integration with AI Assist
How to integrate Apollo AI with WooCommerce

How to integrate AI Assist with Shopify

8. Under Channels, choose the channels you want the AI agent to support.

9. On the Settings page, under Behaviour, you can

- Delay live chat answering — add a brief delay before sending replies to create a more human feel.

- Enable answer revision — allow the AI agent to improve or refine answers based on conversation context.
- Enable multilingual support — respond to customers in multiple languages.

Under Escalation (paid plans only), you can define the shortcuts the AI agent should use when visitors ask to speak to human agents or when the answer can’t be found in the data source.
Learn more here:
Training AI Assist to transfer conversations to human agents

Under AI Features, you can enable Smart Reply, AI Commands, and AI Transcription.
Learn more here:
Using Smart Reply
Using AI Commands
Understanding AI Transcription in tawk.to

To delete the AI agent, click Delete under Delete agent.

Upgrade your AI Assist plan

1. Click Add-ons in the left navigation bar.

2. Click Upgrade under AI Assist.

3. Select a plan and click Continue.

4. Enter payment details and click Activate Now. Your new plan takes effect immediately.

To learn more about changing your AI Assist plans, see this guide: AI Assist Plans and Subscriptions

Add AI agents (paid plans only)

You can have one or multiple AI agents depending on your support needs. Each AI agent can support one channel at a time; you may want separate agents for Live Chat, Ticketing, Facebook Messenger, or SMS.

To add a new AI agent:

1. Click Automation in the left navigation bar.

2. Click Agents in the left submenu.

3. Click Add Agent or + Add in the upper right corner.

4. Answer the setup wizard’s questions to complete building your AI agent.

5. Once the agent is created, it’ll appear on the Agents page. You can enable/disable AI agents using the individual toggle switches.

To learn more about adding AI agents, see this guide: Deploying multiple AI Agents across support channels

Test and preview

Testing helps you confirm tone, accuracy, and overall behavior. Use the built-in preview window to test how your AI Agent responds before going live. Try different types of questions, including:

Common customer inquiries
Complex product or service questions
Situations where escalation should occur

Note: Testing your AI agent doesn’t use up your message credits.

Additional information

Maintain high-quality data
Keep your data sources, Knowledge Base articles, product info, and FAQs updated. Accurate, current data ensures your AI agent provides reliable, trustworthy answers.
Start small and expand gradually
Begin with the most common questions and use cases. As you gain confidence, expand your AI agent’s scope to handle more complex queries and additional channels.
Review and refine regularly
Check your AI agent’s responses often, review suggested messages, and adjust your Base Prompt and data sources as needed to improve accuracy and relevance.
Protect sensitive information
Only upload or connect data that you are comfortable sharing with AI for customer support purposes. Ensure sensitive or confidential information is not exposed
.
Monitor message usage and plan accordingly
Keep track of your monthly message allocation to avoid interruptions. Consider upgrading or purchasing additional credits if your usage grows.