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

# AI Chat Overview

## How AI Chat Works

Our chat AI can reply to contacts without needing workflows, API calls, or webhooks. How does that work? It's all thanks to something called **Active Tags**. These are specific tags you assign to an assistant ahead of time. When a message comes in and one of those tags is detected, the system knows which assistant should respond and when.

Here's the general idea:

* **No Active Tag:** The AI won't reply, but it will still log the conversation and add it to the assistant's memory
* **Active Tag Present:** The system checks which assistant is linked to that tag and uses that one to generate a response

You can find and create your Active Tags in the sidebar menu where it says **Active Tags**.

For each Active Tag, you will give the tag a name, create the tag itself, and then link it to an AI Assistant.

## Tips for Using Active Tags Effectively

* Make sure your active tags are **unique**, so they don't conflict with existing tags in your CRM or contact list
* You can use these tags **dynamically**—meaning if you've already added them into workflows, you can simply reassign which assistant is tied to a tag without needing to redo your automation setup

## How to Turn AI Chat On

Simply assign an **Active Tag** to a contact and the AI will be on for that Contact. The easiest way to do this is by enrolling your contact into a workflow. You may also choose to automatically enroll your contacts into that workflow based off a certain trigger.

**Example:** You could use "Form Submitted" if you wanted to turn the AI on every time a lead submitted a form on your website.

## How to Turn AI Chat Off

To turn your AI Chat off, simply **remove the Active Tag** from your contact. You can also enable **"Sleep Mode"** so that your AI will turn off for a pre-determined amount of time if the user sends a message. This prevents the AI from interjecting if the user would like to have real human interaction with one of their leads/clients.

## Sleep Mode

You can use the sleep mode toggle to temporarily turn off the AI whenever a user or workflow sends a message. Once that outbound message is triggered, the AI will pause for however many minutes you've set. This helps avoid any overlap or confusion between human responses and AI replies.

## Key AI Chat Features

* ✅ **Active Tag system** for intelligent chat activation
* ✅ **Automatic conversation logging** even when AI is inactive
* ✅ **Dynamic tag reassignment** without workflow disruption
* ✅ **Workflow-based activation** for automated lead engagement
* ✅ **Sleep mode functionality** to prevent AI/human overlap
* ✅ **Flexible on/off controls** for precise chat management
* ✅ **Memory retention** across all conversations

## Best Practices

**Tag Management:**

* Use descriptive, unique tag names (e.g., `concrete_leads`, `support_active`)
* Avoid conflicts with existing CRM tags
* Keep tag names lowercase with underscores

**Activation Strategy:**

* Set up workflow triggers for automatic AI activation
* Use form submissions, website visits, or specific actions as triggers
* Test activation workflows with sample contacts

**Sleep Mode Usage:**

* Enable sleep mode when human intervention is expected
* Set appropriate pause durations based on your response time
* Use for handoffs between AI and human agents

## Troubleshooting

**AI not responding:**

* Verify Active Tag is properly assigned to contact
* Check if Sleep Mode is enabled and still active
* Confirm assistant is correctly linked to the Active Tag

**AI responding when it shouldn't:**

* Check for unintended Active Tags on contacts
* Review workflow enrollment criteria
* Verify Sleep Mode settings are configured properly

**Conversations not being logged:**

* Contact buildassistants.app support if conversation logging fails
* Ensure contact is properly created in the system