Configuring your AI Voice Agent

This article explains how to configure an AI Voice Agent in the Aircall Dashboard, covering each section of the setup: agent profile, company information, knowledge base, call transfer rules, greeting and farewell, intake flow, and custom capabilities. It also covers how to test your agent before going live.

Table of contents

• The main AI Voice Agents page
• Creating an AI Voice Agent
• Overview of the configuration steps
  • Agent profile
  • Company information
  • Knowledge base
  • Greeting and farewell
  • Intake flow
  • Conversational Guidelines (Beta)
  • Call transfer rules
  • Custom capabilities (Beta)
• Testing your AI Voice Agent
• FAQ

The main AI Voice Agents page

The main AI Voice Agents page lists all agents you have created, showing each agent's name, description, language, and tone.

From this page you can also:

• Track your free trial minutes or current usage for the billing period using the usage tracker at the top of the page
• Edit, duplicate, or delete an agent using the three-dot menu next to its name
• Set usage alerts by clicking the settings icon in the top-right corner. You can define a threshold in minutes and send alerts to billing or personal email addresses to avoid unexpected charges

Note: If the agent is still assigned to a call flow, you will see a warning requiring you to unassign it before deletion.

Creating an AI Voice Agent

Steps:

1. Go to Aircall Dashboard > AI Voice Agent
2. Click Create an AI Voice Agent
3. Complete the Agent Profile fields (described below)
4. Work through each section in the left panel to finish configuration 
5. Click Save Changes after editing each section

Note: You can create as many AI Voice Agents as you need without additional cost. Pricing is based solely on consumption (minutes of calls handled). You can edit or delete agents at any time.

Overview of the configuration steps

When you open an agent's configuration, the left panel shows all available sections grouped by purpose:

• Getting started: Agent Profile
• Teach it what to know: Company information, Knowledge base
• Control when humans step in: Call transfer rules
• Decide what it should do: Greeting and farewell, Intake flow, Conversational guidelines (Beta)
• Functional abilities: Custom capabilities (Beta)

The Test Agent panel on the right side of the screen is available throughout configuration. Use it to run a mock conversation at any point without leaving the page.

At the top of the left panel, you will see your agent's current status (for example, Inactive) and a Connect number button to assign the agent to an Aircall number.

Agent profile

The Agent Profile section sets the agent's core identity.

Note: For languages that distinguish between formal and informal address (such as "vous" vs. "tu" in French), the tone setting does not change pronoun usage. By default, the agent uses informal address unless you specify otherwise in the Knowledge base.

Company information

The Company information section defines how the agent refers to your business.

Knowledge base

The Knowledge base is where you provide the information the agent uses to answer caller questions, such as FAQs or product details. You can add, remove, or update knowledge sources at any time. Changes are applied automatically once processing is complete.

Note: The knowledge base cannot currently query or interact with external systems such as a CRM or helpdesk. This capability will be added in the future.

Best practices for structuring your knowledge base

Tip: If your knowledge base grows too large, consider splitting content across multiple AI Voice Agents. For example, create one agent per product line with its own FAQs, and use an IVR in your call flow to route callers to the most relevant agent.

1. Use headers to organize content. Divide the knowledge base into thematic groups or categories:

===========================
Frequently Asked Questions
===========================
<FAQs go here>

====================
Industry Acronyms
====================
<Acronyms go here>

2. Group related information. Keep content on the same topic together. Keep answers concise and avoid overloading the agent with lengthy responses.

3. Use a Q&A format for FAQs. Avoid numbered lists; use a clear question-and-answer structure instead:

• Q: What hours are you operational?
  A: We are open Monday to Friday, 10 AM to 7 PM.
• Q: How long does shipping take?
  A: Standard shipping takes 3–5 business days. Expedited options are available at checkout.

4. Adapt content for voice. If you are repurposing content from your website, remove or rephrase anything that relies on visuals, links, or formatting that does not translate to a spoken conversation.

5. Add industry-specific knowledge. Include acronyms, jargon, product details, or other context that helps the agent answer caller questions accurately.

Important: Links and multimedia cannot currently be added to the knowledge base.

For more details about knowledge sources, please visit Using knowledge sources for your AI Voice Agent

Greeting and farewell

The Greeting and farewell section defines the messages callers hear at the start and end of a call.

Tip: Avoid special characters in these messages, as they may cause the agent to misread the text. Characters to avoid include emojis, accented letters (é, ñ), symbols (€ , ™), and non-Latin scripts such as Cyrillic or Chinese characters.

Intake flow

The Intake flow section lets you configure questions the agent asks callers before transferring them to a human agent. Answers are saved to call notes and logged in any connected integrations.

Tip: Define 3 to 5 intake questions. Asking too many can lengthen the conversation and frustrate callers.

Examples of intake questions

• What is your order ID?
• What is your customer ID?
• Please describe the issue you are experiencing
• Is your issue related to "Billing", "Account or App", or "Existing Orders"?
• What day and time works best for a callback?
• What phone number should we use to reach you if the call disconnects?

Adding a question

Steps:

1. In the Intake flow section, click + Add a question
2. Type your question in the field provided
3. Click Save Changes

Conditional follow-up questions

You can configure follow-up questions that trigger based on a caller's answer to an intake question.

Steps:

1. Under an intake question, click Add answer
2. Define the answer that should trigger the follow-up. The defined answer does not need to match the caller's exact words; it captures the general intent of their response
3. Add one or more follow-up questions for that answer branch
4. Click Save Changes

Note: Only one level of nested questions is supported. Multi-level branching is not available.

Example:

Intake question: "Is your issue related to 'Billing', 'Account or App', or 'Existing Orders'?"

Defined answer branch: Billing

If a caller says "I have an issue with my bill," the agent interprets this as Billing and asks the relevant follow-up question.

Conversational guidelines (Beta)

The Conversational guidelines section lets you provide additional instructions that further customize your AI Voice Agent's behavior and responses. Use this free-text field to define rules or preferences that shape how the agent communicates with callers, beyond what is configured in the Agent Profile and Knowledge base.

Steps:

1. In the left navigation, under Decide what it should do, click Conversational guidelines.
2. Enter your guidelines in the text field provided.
3. Click Save Changes.

Call transfer rules

The Call transfer rules section controls whether and how the agent hands off calls to a human agent.

Enabling transfers

To enable transfers, toggle on Allow AI Voice Agent to escalate the call.

Important: For transfers to work, your Smartflow must include a routing step placed immediately after the AI Voice Agent. See [Adding your AI Voice Agent to a call flow] for details.

When transfers are triggered

When escalation is enabled, a transfer is triggered when:

• The caller explicitly asks to speak with a human agent
• The agent detects caller frustration
• The agent completes the intake flow and determines further help is required

Transfer settings

Transfer branches

Transfer branches let you route callers to different destinations based on their intent (for example, Billing, Technical Support, or Cancellations). Each branch you create becomes a separate path in your Smartflow.

Steps:

1. In Call transfer rules, ensure escalation is enabled and a transfer setting is selected
2. Under Transfer branches, click + Add Transfer branch
3. In the panel that opens, define:
   • Branch name (for example, Billing)
   • Trigger condition (describe when this branch should activate, for example "Caller asks about pricing")
   • Transfer message (what the agent says before handing off, for example "I'll transfer you to the Billing team")
4. Review the Smartflows preview to confirm the branch has been added
5. Click Create branch, then click Save Changes
6. Complete routing in Smartflows by configuring the destination for each branch path

A Fallback transfer branch is included by default. Calls follow this path when no other branch matches.

Note: If the agent is assigned to multiple numbers, transfer branches are not available. Transfer branches are tied to a single number's Smartflow. To use branches, create a dedicated agent configured for one specific number.

Transfer message

You can define a custom transfer message for each branch to replace the farewell message during a handoff. This sets clear expectations for the caller before they are connected to a human agent.

Custom capabilities (Beta)

The Custom capabilities section provides advanced configuration options for your AI Voice Agent.

Agent flags

Custom voice

Enter a Custom Voice ID to use a personalized voice for your agent. This overrides the default voice set in the Agent Profile.

API actions

Create custom API integrations that your AI Voice Agent can execute during calls. Click Create API Action to configure a new action.

Authentication methods

Manage the credentials used by your API integrations. Click Add Authentication Method to add a new set of credentials. Supported types include API Key, Bearer Token, and Basic Authentication.

Testing your AI Voice Agent

The Test Agent panel is available on the right side of every configuration screen. Click Start test call at any time to run a mock conversation and hear how your agent sounds before going live.

What the test covers

Testing with a free trial

New accounts include a free trial period shown as available minutes on the main AI Voice Agents page. Test calls during this period are free of charge.

Important: Once your free trial minutes are used, all test calls are billed at standard per-minute rates.

Testing with an internal setup

For a more complete test that includes real call flows, intake logging, and live transfers, set the agent up on an internal Aircall number or as a hidden IVR option not shared with customers.

Note: Internal setup testing is not free. Standard per-minute rates apply once your free trial has ended.

FAQ

Can I create multiple AI Voice Agents?

Yes. You can create as many agents as you need. There is no cost per agent; pricing is based on minutes consumed.

What happens if no transfer branch matches a caller's intent?

The call follows the Fallback transfer path, which is included by default in every agent's transfer branch configuration.

Can I use the same AI Voice Agent on multiple numbers?

Yes, but if you do, transfer branches will not be available for that agent. To use branches, configure a dedicated agent for each specific number.

What is the difference between the Friendly and Professional tone settings?

Both tones affect the agent's overall style, emotional quality, and communication approach. Friendly is more conversational; Professional is more formal. Neither setting changes pronoun usage for languages with formal and informal address forms.

Will intake question responses be logged in my CRM?

Yes, if you have a connected integration configured for call logging, intake responses will be documented there as well as in the Aircall workspace.