Hand a chat from the AI to a person, and back

An AI assistant should know when to step aside. Some conversations need judgment, empathy or authority that only a person on your team has.

When a person should step in

• The visitor asks for a person.
• The visitor is upset, or the topic is a complaint.
• The assistant has tried and couldn't help.
• The request needs a decision only you can make: an exception, a discount or a custom job.
• The topic is sensitive: health, money or legal matters, where you want a person's wording.

Write these triggers into your knowledge in your own words, for example: "If someone mentions a billing dispute, offer a person straight away and don't discuss the amount."

Standard: follow-up requests by email

Standard has no live chat seats. The assistant is told this plainly and never claims that a team member has joined or will answer right now. It says the request will be forwarded and that your team will get back to the visitor. The visitor uses the request form, ticks "I'd like someone from the team to follow up", gives an email address or phone number, and agrees to be contacted. Your team receives a notification email, and the request appears in the inquiry inbox, marked as a follow-up request.

For many small businesses this is enough: the visitor knows what happens next, and your team calls back with the full context.

Premium: live takeover and handing back to the AI

On Premium, you can switch on live chat. It is off until you turn it on. A conversation can then reach a person in two ways: the visitor presses "Talk to a person", or the assistant passes the chat on when the visitor asks for someone, is upset, or couldn't be helped. Here is what happens next:

1. The chat is marked as waiting for a person, and your team members receive an email alert.
2. Until someone takes over, the AI keeps helping, so the visitor isn't left waiting in silence.
3. A team member takes over from the panel. The AI pauses for that conversation only, and every other chat continues as normal.
4. Only one person can hold a chat. If two operators press take over at the same moment, one gets it and the other is told who already has it. An owner or administrator can take over a chat someone else is holding.
5. When the person is done, they either hand the chat back to the AI or end the human part of the conversation.

The taken-over chat sits next to your other conversations in the unified inbox.

Team accounts and roles: owner, administrator, operator (up to 5 people)

Premium includes named team accounts for up to 5 people, each with a role:

• Owner: the business account holder, with full control, including the team.
• Administrator: manages the assistant and can take over chats held by others.
• Operator: answers the chats they take over.

Named accounts mean you can see who answered what. That matters when a customer later says "someone told me".

What visitors see while a person joins

The widget keeps the visitor informed at each step, with plain messages along these lines:

• after the request: "A team member will join this chat soon; until then the assistant keeps helping."
• when someone takes over: "[First name] joined the chat."
• when the chat is handed back: "You are back with the assistant."

The AI never pretends to be a person, and a person never has to pretend to be the AI.

Hybrid AI and human: why it beats either alone

An AI-only setup answers instantly but stalls on judgment calls. A people-only live chat needs someone watching all the time and stays empty after hours. Combining them lets each do what it is good at: the AI handles the repeat questions at any hour and collects details, and people handle exceptions with the conversation history in front of them. The trade-offs are covered in AI chatbot vs. live chat. The staffing question is covered in Will a chatbot replace staff?

Not sure which plan fits? Read Standard vs. Premium.

Questions and answers

What if nobody on the team is available?

The AI keeps helping the visitor, and the request stays listed in the panel. The visitor can also leave a request with the form so your team can reply later.

Can we hand the chat back to the AI halfway through?

Yes. The team member who holds the chat hands it back, and the visitor sees that they are back with the assistant.

Does the team member see the earlier conversation?

Yes. The person taking over sees the conversation so far, so the visitor doesn't have to repeat themselves.

Is live takeover available on Standard?

No. On Standard the visitor requests a follow-up and your team is notified by email. Live takeover is a Premium feature.