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The “Ask” component determines the question an Autopilot asks in a conversation. You can define multiple questions so that users can receive varied messages in each session for better conversational experiences.

1. Click on the desired Autopilot model and select Automation designer [1].

2. You will be taken to the “Automation Designer” tab inside the “Builder app”, where the flow configuration will take place.

3. Under “General”, select the Ask component [2] and then drag it to a canvas on your right side [3].

4. Double-click the component. Then, the component settings panel [4] will appear.

5. Enter the required details of the component:

1. • “Component name” [5]: The name of the “Ask” component. It can contain letters, numbers (except as a first character), and underscores, and can be as long as 30 characters.
   • “Ask” message [6]: You can define a single message or multiple messages for the “Message” field to request user input. If you add multiple messages, one will be randomly picked during the conversation. You can add up to five message alternatives with a maximum of 1000 characters for each message. For voice calls, you can define messages in SSML format to allow for more customization in your questions, such as pauses, abbreviations, and currency expressions.
     
     Note: Click Add alternative or the trash can icon to add or remove a message. You must define at least one message.
     
2. 
   
   • “Capture” [7]: The type of information that the Autopilot captures from the response. If you define multiple options, the Autopilot can only capture one of them during the conversation. There are different types of information that can be captured:
     • Capture dialpad input (DTMF) [8]: Capture information entered by the caller on the dial pad by sliding the toggle to the “on” position. This option is only available for the voice channel. For more information on DTMF input timeout, please read this section.
     • Intent (Custom) [9]: Define the name of the intent to capture. The variable will be saved with the name of the intent if it is captured by the Autopilot.
     • Entity (Custom) [10]: Define the name of the entity and the corresponding intent containing that entity to capture. The variable will be saved with the value of the entity if it is captured by the Autopilot.
     • Anything [11]: The Autopilot will capture everything that the user says. If this option is checked, you cannot add any intent or entity.
       Note: Click Add or the trash can icon to add or remove an intent or entity. You must define at least one intent or entity.
     • “Variable” [12]: Enter a variable that stores the captured intent’s name, entity value, or any user input (if the Anything option is selected).
       
   • “Fallback” [13]: You can define a single message or multiple messages as responses to user input if no applicable intent or entity is captured. If you add multiple messages, one will be randomly picked as the response. You can add up to five message alternatives with a maximum of 1000 characters for each message. For voice calls, you can define messages in SSML format to allow for more customization in your response, such as pauses, abbreviations, and currency expressions.
     Note: Click Add alternative or the trash can icon to add or remove a message. You must define at least one message.

6. Click Save [14].

7. After the component is created, you can connect it with another component. Keep in mind that if the component is not directly or indirectly connected to a “Flow Trigger” component, it will be ignored when the flow is executed.

Deleting an Ask Component

1. On your canvas, click the “Ask” component you want to delete, and then press the backspace key (Windows) or the delete key (Mac) on your keyboard. Alternatively, you can double-click the component and select Delete in the side panel that appears.
   
2. Click Delete component in the dialog to confirm the deletion.