With Smart Support – Smart Widget version 1.0.3 or later, you can integrate the Ask AI feature into the front-end support widget. This feature allows visitors to type questions directly into the widget and receive AI-generated answers based on your available support content and AI configuration.
Ask AI is designed to help users find answers faster without needing to browse through documentation manually. When connected with your knowledge base, it can use relevant published articles as context and provide helpful responses inside the widget.
Note: Ask AI uses the AI configuration from the core Smart Support plugin. You must configure your own OpenAI API key in the plugin settings. AI access is not built into the plugin and is not provided automatically.
Requirements
Before enabling Ask AI in the widget, make sure the following requirements are met:
- You are using Smart Support – Smart Widget version 1.0.3 or later.
- The core Smart Support plugin is installed and configured.
- Your own OpenAI API key is added to the Smart Support AI settings.
- Your AI assistant settings are configured under Smart Support > Settings > Advanced > AI assistant.
- If you want Ask AI to answer from documentation, your knowledge base articles should be published and available.
Enable Ask AI in the Widget
To enable the Ask AI feature:
- Go to Smart Support > Settings > Widget.
- Find the Widget Features section.
- Enable the Enable Ask AI option.
- Save your settings.
Once enabled, the Ask AI option becomes available in the front-end widget. Visitors can then enter their questions and receive AI-powered responses.
Customize Ask AI Widget Text
You can customize the Ask AI interface text from the Widget Content section. This allows you to adjust the wording to match your brand, documentation style, or support tone.
Ask AI — placeholder
The Ask AI — placeholder field controls the text shown inside the Ask AI input box before the user types a question.
Example:
Ask the AI about our documentation…
This placeholder is displayed when Ask AI is enabled. It may also appear when both Search and Ask AI are enabled together.
Use this field to guide users on what they can ask. For example, you can use text such as:
Ask a question about our help articles…
or:
Type your support question here…
Ask AI — send control label
The Ask AI — send control label field controls the label used for the send action in the widget. This is used for the send arrow tooltip and screen readers.
Example: Ask AI
This improves accessibility and helps users understand what the send button does.
You can leave this field blank to use the default label:
Send question
Enable or Disable Ask AI
The Ask AI feature can be turned on or off from the Widget Features section.
To enable Ask AI, check: Enable Ask AI
To disable Ask AI, uncheck the same option.
Disabling Ask AI removes the AI question feature from the front-end widget. This does not remove your core AI configuration or OpenAI API key from Smart Support.
Configure Ask AI Knowledge Base Context
The Search & AI — knowledge base section controls how Ask AI uses your knowledge base content when generating answers.
Use knowledge base articles for Ask AI
Enable the following option: Use knowledge base articles for Ask AI
When this option is enabled, the widget searches for relevant published documentation articles that match the visitor’s question. These articles are then passed to the AI as context so it can generate a more accurate and useful response.
This is helpful when you want Ask AI to answer based on your actual support documentation instead of relying only on the general AI model response.
Important: This option requires Instant Knowledgebase, the same system used by the Search Knowledge Base feature.
Maximum articles to include in AI context
The Maximum articles to include in AI context setting controls how many matching knowledge base articles can be sent to the AI for each question.
Example: 8
A higher number allows Ask AI to review more article context before generating an answer. A lower number limits the amount of documentation context used.
Choose a value based on the size and structure of your knowledge base. For most setups, the default value should work well.
How Ask AI Uses Your AI Configuration
Ask AI does not include its own separate AI engine. It uses the AI assistant configuration from the core Smart Support plugin.
You can manage the AI configuration from:
Smart Support > Settings > Advanced > AI assistant
In this section, you need to configure your OpenAI connection, including your own API key.
Note: The OpenAI API key must be provided by the site owner or administrator. The plugin does not include a built-in OpenAI key, free AI credits, or bundled AI usage.
Any AI usage may depend on your OpenAI account, API limits, pricing, and configuration.
Recommended Setup
For the best Ask AI experience:
- Enable Ask AI from the widget settings.
- Add your own OpenAI API key in the core AI assistant settings.
- Enable Use knowledge base articles for Ask AI.
- Keep your knowledge base articles published and updated.
- Use a clear placeholder so users understand what they can ask.
- Set a reasonable number of articles for AI context, such as 8.
Ask AI in Smart Support – Smart Widget allows visitors to ask questions directly from the front-end widget and receive AI-generated answers. The feature is available in version 1.0.3 or later and can be enabled from:
Smart Support > Settings > Widget > Widget Features
Ask AI uses the core Smart Support AI assistant configuration and requires your own OpenAI API key. When connected with your knowledge base, it can use published documentation articles as context to provide more relevant answers.