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Human handoff transfers a live conversation from the AI to a human agent. It happens automatically when the AI decides it cannot resolve the issue, or when the customer explicitly asks for a human. For the full list of configurable behaviors, see Handoff Settings.

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When handoff happens

By default, handoff is triggered in any of these situations:

Explicit request

The customer asks to speak with a human agent.

AI decision

The AI determines it cannot properly resolve the situation.

Frustration

The customer shows signs of frustration during the conversation.

Forbidden topic

The conversation touches a topic configured for mandatory handoff.
Each of these triggers can be tuned or disabled individually. See Handoff Settings.

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Handoff across channels

Handoff works the same way conceptually on every channel — the AI stops responding, a human takes over, and the full conversation history is preserved. The surface differs per channel.

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Web chat

  • AI stops responding in the same thread.
  • A human agent takes over from the inbox.
  • Full history is preserved for the agent and the customer.
You can also listen for the handoff event on the widget and render a custom message, form, or redirect. 
const options = {
  token: 'YOUR_TOKEN',
  onHandoff: (payload) => {
    console.log('Conversation handed off:', payload.summary);
  },
};

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Phone calls

  • The AI transfers the call to a fallback phone number configured on the phone agent itself.
  • Call history and context (including the AI-generated summary) are preserved on the session.
Phone uses a per-agent handoff configuration rather than the org-wide Handoff Settings. The preset levels, office hours, and data collection toggles on that page apply to text-based channels (web, email, WhatsApp, SMS, Slack) — not voice calls.

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Email

  • The AI assigns complex threads to a human agent.
  • A conversation summary and the full thread context are attached.

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Slack

  • The AI posts the conversation into your designated Slack support channel.
  • Your team replies from Slack and the customer receives the response on their original channel.

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WhatsApp

  • The AI stops responding in the same WhatsApp thread.
  • A human agent continues the conversation. No additional setup required.

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SMS

  • The AI stops responding on the same phone number.
  • A human agent takes over the thread seamlessly.

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Next steps

Handoff Settings

Configure handoff levels, office hours, data collection, and more.

Forbidden topics

Define topics that always trigger a human handoff.