Creating Agents

Agents (also called Templates) are custom AI assistants configured with specific instructions, tools, and knowledge. This guide covers everything you need to know about creating effective agents.

Creating a New Agent

1. Navigate to your organization's Templates page
2. Click Create New Template
3. Fill in the basic information:
   • Name: A descriptive name for your agent
   • Description: What this agent does (shown to users)

Agent Configuration

System Prompt

The system prompt is the main instruction set for your AI agent. This is where you define what the AI should do, how it should behave, and what rules it should follow. Think of it as the "personality and guidelines" document for your agent.

The system prompt typically includes:

• Role definition: What role the AI should play (e.g., customer support agent, writing assistant)
• Behavioral guidelines: How it should respond (tone, format, style)
• Constraints: What it should NOT do
• Context: Background information relevant to all conversations
• Form inputs: Input fields that users fill in before starting (see Form Inputs)

Example:

You are a helpful customer support agent for Acme Corp. 

Your guidelines:
- Be friendly and professional
- Answer questions about our products
- Escalate complex issues to human support
- Never make promises about refunds without verification

{{dropdown|label=Department|name=dept|options={sales:Sales,support:Support,billing:Billing}}}

The user is contacting the {{dept}} department.

User Prompt

The user prompt provides the initial message or context that starts the conversation. This can include:

• A default question or task
• Pre-filled context based on form inputs
• Instructions that appear as the first user message

Chat Types

Gen8 supports different conversation modes. See Chat Types for detailed information.

Type	Description
Regular	Standard back-and-forth conversation
Transcribe	Each image is processed separately (for batch image analysis)
Webhook-only	Agent responds only to webhook triggers
Inline	Quick, single-response interactions

Using Snippets

Snippets allow dynamic content in your prompts that get replaced at runtime. Snippets are inserted by selecting them from the snippet picker in the editor.

Learn more in Snippets.

Using Building Blocks

Building blocks are reusable prompt components that can be shared across agents. Insert them by clicking on a block in the sidebar.

Learn more in Building Blocks.

Adding Tools

Tools give your agent capabilities beyond conversation. To add tools:

1. Go to the Tools section of your agent
2. Click Add Tool
3. Select the tool you want to enable
4. Configure any required settings

See Available Tools for the complete list.

Configuring Sub-Agents

Sub-agents are other agents that your main agent can call upon. This enables:

• Specialized agents for specific tasks
• Breaking complex workflows into manageable parts
• Reusing agent configurations

To add a sub-agent:

1. Go to the Sub-Agents section
2. Click Add Sub-Agent
3. Select an existing agent to attach

Model Provider Presets

Presets allow users to choose different AI model configurations:

1. Go to AI Presets in your agent settings
2. Click Create Preset
3. Configure:
   • Name: Display name for the preset
   • Model: Which AI model to use
   • Settings: Temperature, max tokens, etc.

Users can then select their preferred preset when starting a conversation.

Disclaimer Configuration

Add a required disclaimer that users must accept before chatting:

1. Enable Disclaimer in agent settings
2. Enter your disclaimer text
3. Users must accept before their first conversation

You can invalidate existing acceptances to require everyone to re-accept.

Best Practices

• Be specific about the agent's role and boundaries in your system prompt
• Test your agent with edge cases before sharing
• Use building blocks for frequently used content
• Verify that tools and snippets work as expected