---
title: "AI Agents Settings"
slug: "ai-agent-next-gen"
updated: 2026-05-27T08:40:44Z
published: 2026-05-27T08:40:44Z
---
> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://help.commbox.io/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.
# AI Agents Settings
## Overview
CommBox empowers organizations to build automation that communicates with customers in a guided, focused, and brand-aligned way, ensuring every interaction reflects the company’s tone, standards, and objectives.
#### CommBox Automation
CommBox supports three types of automation agents:
* **[AI Agent](https://help.commbox.io/docs/ai-agent-next-gen#steps-to-set-up-an-ai-agent)** (Beta)  – Autonomous reasoning, goal-driven responses using knowledge, tools, instructions, and context
* **[AI Chatbot](https://help.commbox.io/docs/ai-chatbot){target=`_blank`}**  – Deterministic, flow-based chatbot enhanced with AI for intent detection and retrieval-augmented responses, using structured knowledge and instructions
* **[Chatbot](https://help.commbox.io/docs/chatbot){target=`_blank`}**  – Deterministic, flow-based chatbot without AI, using intents, rules, and APIs to enable sophisticated automation.
The force behind these automated representatives is the **CommBox Flow Builder**, which adds a robust set of capabilities enabling the design of intelligent, dynamic, and highly automated customer journeys. With these tools, you can pave the road for the chatbot to follow, enhance operational efficiency, and elevate the entire customer experience from start to finish.
AI Agents use self-contained mini-flows called **Abilities**, which carry out different tasks and functions. These Abilities are designed as reusable functionalities that can be used as is or customized for their new application.
This guide focuses on the initial setup of an AI Agent. For instructions on creating and using Abilities, please refer to the [Abilities guide](https://help.commbox.io/docs/abilities){target=`_blank`}.
#### About CommSite
CommSite uses an AI Agent or Chatbot to transform an organization’s website content into an AI-guided conversational experience. While AI-driven automation is central to CommSite, it is a separate product with its own functionality and purpose.
This guide does not cover CommSite-specific features. Click [here](https://help.commbox.io/docs/commsite){target=`_blank`} to learn more about CommSite.
#### Steps to Set Up an AI Agent
1. **Name the AI Agent**
Assign a clear and recognizable name.
2. **Define the Agent’s Persona**
Specify tone and communication style, background and role, and preferred reply style and formats.
3. **Provide Instructions**
Outline the mandatory elements for every communication (e.g., required notations) and the specific dos and don’ts the AI must follow.
4. **Abilities**
Select the tools available to the AI Agent. You can choose predefined abilities, customize them to your needs, or create new ones from scratch.
5. **Associated Knowledge Items**
Select specific knowledge base items that the AI Agent will use when interacting with customers. Note that some flows rely heavily on the Unknown steps. For such flows, you can disable the Knowledge Base altogether by toggling off at the top.
6. **Configure Settings**
Apply general rules to the entire flow, including enabling or disabling AI capabilities.
## Step I: Naming your AI Agent
1. At the main side bar, navigate to **Automation Hub**, select the **Agents** tab, and click the **Create Agent** button at the top corner of the page.
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2. At the new dialog box, enter a name for the AI agent, select the AI Agent type, and click **Create**.
A new **AI Agent Settings** page is now available.
To rename the AI agent, click on the title.
To add an Avatar (optional), click the camera icon, upload an existing image, or generate a new one using AI by clicking **Generate Avatar**. Zoom the image to fit within the clear circle, then click **Add** when done.
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## Step II: Agent Persona
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1. **Define your AI Agent's unique voice**
a. Enter your company’s name, the role of agent (support, sales, etc.), and industry. You can select from the list provided or enter your definition.
b. Select the tone of the communication and the level of humor allowed (if any). Note that you can always add additional restrictions in the **Instructions** section.
2. **Persona Add Ons (optional)**
Tell the AI Agent about themselves and the type of person the customer wants to meet. Explain their role in the company, including the brand name and industry.
You can use available templates as a preset alternative. Adjust as needed.
3. **Reply Style**
a. Choose the desired reply’s length: short and concise or detailed and comprehensive.
b. Defines how often emojis are used, based on tone or brand standards.
c. Define the AI agent's Response Language. Note that the AI Agent is part of an existing Flow with a predominant language.
d. Select the Format of the Reply: Headers in front of blocked text, Bold Headings, and Hyperlink when applicable.
e. Choose to present applicable information in an ordered list, an unordered list, or avoid listing altogether.
## Step III: Add Instructions (optional)
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Click **+ Add Instruction** to create instructions that guide how the AI Agent behaves, responds, and selects abilities during conversations.
The following instruction types are available:
### Agent Persona
#### General Instructions
Defines a prompt for how the AI Agent behaves and responds.
Use this to set tone, style, dos and don’ts, and brand-specific guidelines.
**Example: Humor Policy**
* Use light, friendly humor when appropriate
* Never make age-related jokes
* Avoid sarcasm or humor that could be misinterpreted
* If asked about your age, respond that you are an ageless AI agent and reply with a light, playful tone
#### Actionable Instructions
Actionable Instructions allow designers to define triggers that automatically force the AI Agent to select a specific Ability, ensuring more predictable behavior in predefined scenarios.
Triggers can be based on:
* a **prompt**
* existing conversation or customer data using **Entry Conditions**
**Prompt-Based Trigger Example:**
If the customer asks for a better quote after a quote has already been offered, and the customer has Tier2 status or above, enter the VIP123 ability.
**Entry Condition Example:**
Use Entry Conditions when the trigger is based on existing structured data available during the conversation.
If {{user.gender}} = female and {{user.age}} > 18 , enter the niv12 ability.
Determine triggers that will force the AI agent to select a specific Ability.
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### Dynamic Cards
Dynamic Cards are used with AI Agents designed for CommSite. These instructions control when cards (in general or specific ones) should or should not be displayed.
**Examples:**
* Do not display marketing or sales cards if the customer appears upset or frustrated
* Show a “Contact Support” card when the user expresses confusion or requests human assistance
* Display onboarding cards only for new users
* Prevent showing promotional cards during service-related inquiries
Click **Add** to save the instruction.
### Instructions Management
Hover over the top-right corner of an instruction to access the options menu, where you can edit, delete, or deactivate it. Active instructions appear in bold.
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The order of instructions may impact behavior, as the AI Agent follows them sequentially. To reorder, drag and drop an instruction to the desired position.
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## Step IV: Abilities
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This is where the AI Agent’s actionable abilities are created and managed.
Abilities are self-contained, reusable mini-flows that execute specific tasks. They can be used out of the box, customized to meet specific business needs, or created from scratch.
Learn more in the [Abilities](https://help.commbox.io/docs/abilities){target=`_blank`} guide.
## Step V: Knowledge Base
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This section defines the scope of knowledge the AI Agent is permitted to use when generating responses. By clearly limiting that scope, the agent provides more accurate and relevant answers, avoids pulling in unrelated or misleading information, reduces confusion, and improves overall response speed and efficiency.
1. Enable the **Knowledge Items** toggle.
2. To limit the KB items, click **Selected Items** at the top, followed by **+Add Items** in the center.
3. In the dialog box, select the relevant items for the AI Agent and click **Save**.
An upload icon will appear while the data is being processed. Processing time may vary depending on the size of the data.
Note that the AI Agent cannot be published while the upload is in progress.
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4. Save changes made.
**Note:**
* If the items are organized in folders, click the **folder name** to view its contents.
* To add or remove items, click the **Edit** button at the top.
* When selecting a crawled item for an AI Agent, if the crawling process was not completed successfully, a **Partial File** icon appears in the **Status** column. This implies that some information may not be available to the AI Agent. We recommend reselecting this item for the AI Agent. If the problem persists, the crawling process may have been corrupted at the original stage, and you may need to repeat it for the general KB as well.
* If adding file(s) to the AI Agent fails, a dialog box suggests that you **retry** the process.
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* When a file upload fails, a **Failed** icon will appear in the **Status** column. Verify that the file’s content is not corrupted, and repeat the upload process.
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* Empty KB folders cannot be selected when adding items to the AI Agent.
## Step VI: Dynamic Cards
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If the AI Agent is designated for CommSite, this is where Dynamic Cards are created. Dynamic Cards are clickable information packets displayed to the user by the AI Agent as the conversation progresses.
Click [here](https://help.commbox.io/docs/commsite){target=`_blank`} for the CommSite user guide.
## Step VII: Settings
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These settings define the default behavior rules for the AI Agent.
#### AI Settings
For AI Agents, the AI Agent Settings are locked.
#### Default Actions
Configure the Generic Delay behavior for the AI Agent, which determines how the agent responds when a customer becomes unresponsive.
You can configure the AI Agent to:
* Resend the last message after a predefined time interval (from 20 seconds up to 8 hours)
* Automatically jump to a selected Ability for additional handling of the situation
If both actions are enabled, ensure that the second time interval is longer than the first action’s delay.