# Create your first agent

**Category:** [AI Chat Agent](https://help.totalctrl.app/hc/totalctrl/totalctrl-help-center/en-US/categories/agent)
**Updated:** 2026-08-19

## Create an agent

From the AI Support Agent app, click **New agent**. Give it a **Name** (required) — this appears at the top of the chat widget. You can also set:

- **Tagline** — a short line shown under the name (e.g. "Usually replies in seconds").
- **Welcome message** — the greeting the visitor sees when the widget opens.
- **Color** — the accent color of the widget bubble and header.
- **Widget position** — `Bottom right` or `Bottom left`.

Click create and you land on the agent's detail page.
## Fine-tune in the Configuration tab

On the **Configuration** tab you can edit everything above plus:

- **Custom instructions** — extra guidance appended to the agent's system prompt (tone, things it should never say, when to escalate).
- **Retrieval tuning** — how many knowledge chunks to pull per answer and the minimum relevance score required. Lower the score threshold to make the agent more willing to answer; raise it to keep answers tightly grounded.

Click **Save Configuration** when done.
## Live vs. Draft

New agents start as **Draft** and are not visible to the public. Toggle the agent to **Live** only after you've added knowledge and tested it. You can flip this switch at any time without re-embedding the widget. Next, [add knowledge sources](add-knowledge-sources) so the agent has something to answer from.

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## Related Articles

- [Reading your agent analytics](https://help.totalctrl.app/en-US/articles/agent-analytics)
- [Embed the chat widget](https://help.totalctrl.app/en-US/articles/embed-the-chat-widget)
- [AI Support Agent overview](https://help.totalctrl.app/en-US/articles/ai-support-agent-overview-1)
- [Managing Agent Conversations](https://help.totalctrl.app/en-US/articles/managing-agent-conversations)
- [Add knowledge sources](https://help.totalctrl.app/en-US/articles/add-knowledge-sources)

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