Human Handoff

When the AI can't help, conversations are escalated to human agents. The handoff is seamless — the user stays in the same chat, and the agent responds directly from the inbox.

How Escalation Works

The AI triggers escalation automatically when:

1. User explicitly asks — "Let me talk to a human", "speak to an agent"
2. Repeated frustration — After 3+ unsatisfied exchanges
3. Sensitive topics — Billing, refunds, account operations

The chatbot uses the escalateToHuman tool, which:

• Sets the conversation's handoffStatus to "queued"
• Shows a log message in the inbox
• Notifies the widget that a human will take over

Handoff States

Agent Workflow

Taking Over

1. Open the Inbox
2. Look for conversations with an amber "Needs Human" badge
3. Click Take Over in the conversation toolbar
4. The conversation is assigned to you — the widget shows your name

Responding

Use the Reply tab in the inbox to send messages directly to the user. Use the Private Note tab for internal notes (not visible to the user).

Handing Back to AI

Click Hand Back to AI when the issue is resolved. The user's next message will be handled by the AI again.

Inbox Indicators

• Amber dot in conversation list = queued (waiting for agent)
• Green dot = human agent is handling
• "Needs Human" badge in conversation header
• "Live — Agent Name" badge when assigned

Configuration

Escalation is always available — the AI has the escalateToHuman tool registered as an internal tool that cannot be disabled. The escalation rules are part of the system prompt.