Agent chat & communication

Agent chat is where you talk to your agents. Every agent conversation happens here — whether you’re asking a quick question, kicking off a multi-step task, or reviewing what an agent produced.

Conversation types link

Starting a new chat link

Direct chat with an agent link

1. Click an agent in the Agents sidebar.
2. A fresh conversation is displayed to start chatting in.

Starting a group chat link

Group chats let you bring multiple agents and/or members into a single conversation — useful when a task benefits from more than one agent’s expertise, or when you want a human colleague involved alongside an agent.

1. Click the New chat button (pencil icon) at the top of the “Workspaces” options menu.
2. In the To: field, search for and select the agents and members you want to include. Each participant appears as a pill — click the × to remove one.
3. Type your opening message and press Enter to start the conversation.

You can also use @ mentions in any existing conversation to bring an additional agent or member into the thread.

Sending messages link

• Type your message in the input area at the bottom of the chat window.
• Type @ to open the mention suggester and search for agents, human colleagues and files from the Content area.
• Mentions notify the right people (or agents) and provide full context.
• When you mention files, your agents can read them directly from the Content area.
• Press Enter to send, or Shift + Enter for a line break.
• Click the stop icon to cancel a response while the agent is replying.

Mentions link

Type @ to open the mention suggester and select an agent, member, or file. Mentions bring the right person or agent into the conversation and give them full context.

When you mention a file, the agent reads it directly from the Content area.

Attachments link

• Click the paperclip icon or drag and drop files into the chat window.
• Uploaded files appear as preview cards. Click to view the full content.
• Supported formats include documents, spreadsheets, images, and PDFs.

Voice input link

Click the microphone icon in the message input to dictate your message. Autohive transcribes your speech to text — you can review and edit the transcription before sending. Your browser may prompt for microphone access the first time you use this feature

Message formatting link

Autohive supports Markdown in messages:

• **bold**, *italic*, `inline code`
• Fenced code blocks, lists, blockquotes, and links

What agents send back link

Agent responses can contain more than plain text. Here is what you may see in a conversation:

Text responses link

Standard replies with Markdown formatting. Long responses may include a Summary block at the top.

Artifacts link

When an agent produces a document, webpage, chart, or other structured output, it appears in the Artifact viewer — a panel that opens alongside the chat.

The artifact viewer has two modes:

• Preview — renders the output (e.g., shows an HTML page or formatted document)
• Code — shows the raw source

From the artifact viewer you can:

• Switch between versions if the agent has revised the output
• Copy the content to your clipboard
• Download as HTML page or Download as PDF
• Save to Content Area to store it in your workspace
• Share artifact to generate a shareable link (see Sharing an artifact below)

Tool messages link

When an agent uses an integration or built-in tool (e.g., searches Google Drive, sends a Slack message), a tool message appears in the conversation showing which tool was used and what it did. Click to expand the full output.

Approval requests link

If an agent action has Requires approval enabled, the agent will pause and show an approval prompt before proceeding:

• Click Approve to let the action run.
• Click Deny to block it.

See Agent tools & capabilities to learn how to configure approval requirements.

Managing conversations link

Renaming and deleting link

Right-click or open the three-dot menu on any conversation in the chat history sidebar to Rename or Delete it. Deleting a conversation is permanent.

Branching a conversation link

You can branch off a new conversation from any point in an existing one. Hover over a message and click the Branch option to create a new conversation that starts with all the messages up to that point — including the same agent and files. This is useful for exploring a different direction without losing your original thread.

Sharing a conversation link

Click the Share button in the chat header to generate a shareable link to the current conversation. Options include:

• Who can view — anyone with the link (no Autohive account required)
• Hide member details — share anonymously without showing participant names
• Link expiry — set the link to expire after 24 hours, 7 days, 30 days, or a custom duration

Sharing creates a snapshot of the conversation as it exists at that moment. Any new messages after sharing remain private.

To manage or revoke existing share links, open the Share modal and deactivate any active shares.

Sharing an artifact link

You can share an individual artifact without sharing the entire conversation. Click Share artifact in the artifact viewer to generate a link to that specific artifact.

Artifact share options are the same as conversation shares:

• Hide member details — share anonymously without showing participant names
• Link expiry — never, 24 hours, 7 days, 30 days, or a custom duration

Anyone with the link can view the artifact without an Autohive account.

Chat history link

Use Search (⌘/Ctrl + F) to find messages or files in the current chat.

All conversations are saved automatically. Use the chat history sidebar (desktop) to navigate between past conversations, grouped by time period (Today, Yesterday, Last Week, etc.).

Notifications & presence link

• Unread badges on the sidebar highlight active conversations.
• Presence indicators show who’s online and typing.

Best practices for productive chats link

1. Be specific when you tell your agents exactly what you need and reference files.
2. Use separate chats for different topics to keep things organised.
3. Ask agents to create meeting summaries to capture decisions.
4. Use mentions strategically to bring the right expertise into each conversation.

Troubleshooting link