The Chat Input is the starting point of every chatbot flow. This component represents all messages coming from the user. Without it, the chatbot would not work, as it wouldn’t have any material to work with.
What is the Chat Input
Each chatbot reply starts with a user prompt. For example, a customer may ask the simple query: “How does your product compare to the competition?” This is the input. There can only be one input component per flow, and anything the user says during the chat goes through this component.
The bot then arrives at an output answer by running this query through all the subsequent components, such as specific document sources, LLM models, visualization options, and more.
As it’s always the starting point, there is no handle on the left side. The right-side handle can be connected to any component that takes text as input. To see the options, just hover over the connector handle.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the Chat Input component?
Chat Input represents all user messages. It’s always at the beginning of the flow. Since the bot needs to know the query, the input component must always be present, and there can only be one input component per flow.
Can I build a chatbot with only the Chat Input and Output components?
It’s possible, but the bot would be of no use. Since the user input would be the only component it could work with, the answers would simply mirror the input. Other components, such as the desired LLM model or knowledge sources, must be added for the bot to function properly.
What happens if I don’t include Chat Input?
The bot would not work without being prompted by human input. If you forget to include the Chat Input component, the app will remind you to do so.
