Ask mode and Agent mode
When to use the mode that answers, and the mode that acts
Updated 2026.08.13
This page covers the AI chat's two modes and when to use each. Switch via Mode on the input box.
How the two modes differ
| Ask | Agent | |
|---|---|---|
| Purpose | Questions, advice, drafting | Creating, updating, and deleting data |
| Result | An answer comes back; applying it is up to you | An action proposal is created; approve it to run |
When in doubt, start with Ask. Ask changes nothing, so it's safe to experiment.
What Ask mode is for
- Summarize the key points of a recent meeting
- Draft a follow-up email to a customer
- Discuss the next action on a deal
Answers are just for reading — nothing is written to your records. If you like the result, copy it over yourself, or have Agent mode do it.
What Agent mode can do
In Agent mode you can request these operations.
| Target | Operations |
|---|---|
| Tasks | Create / update / delete |
| Notes | Create / update / delete |
| Contacts | Create / update / delete |
| Companies | Create / update / delete |
| Deals | Create / update / delete |
| Meetings | Create / update / delete |
| Create a draft | |
| Other | Web research |
Requested operations don't run immediately. They appear as an action proposal you can review, and take effect only once approved. See The action proposal approval flow.
Use mentions to specify the target
When operating on existing data in Agent mode, specify the target with a mention. Without one, you get an error.
- Updating a task → pick it with `@task:`
- Updating a contact, company, or deal → pick with `@contact:` `@company:` `@deal:`
- Email drafts → pick the recipient with `@contact`
Creating a meeting requires a date and time (e.g. `2026-06-05 14:00`, or a range like `2026-06-05 14:00~15:00`). The meeting tool can be zoom / google meet / teams / offline, and so on.