3CX AI Agents Configuration

Introduction

3CX AI Agents provide intelligent call handling for virtual receptionists, personal assistants and customer service scenarios.

Before creating an AI Agent, configure an AI provider. 3CX supports OpenAI and xAI Grok (Update 10 and above), and only one provider can be active at a time.

This feature requires 3CX AI Edition.

Configure an AI provider

Go to 3CX Admin Console > Integrations > AI > Realtime API. Choose the provider and complete its configuration.

For realtime voice and text processing, you can choose from these configuration options:

Switching providers

When you switch providers, existing agents use the new provider, Knowledge Source bindings are cleared and voice styles reset to their defaults. Reconfigure those settings after the switch.

Add Knowledge Sources

Knowledge Sources allow AI Agents to retrieve company-specific information during calls and conversations. Examples include:

  • Business hours and holiday rules
  • Department routing instructions
  • Product and pricing FAQs
  • Company policies
  • Approved company wording

Go to Admin > Integrations > AI > Knowledge Sources > Add.

Enter a clear Name and Description, then upload the relevant files, PDF, docs or text.

Tips

  • Use a clear Description that accurately explains the content.
  • Keep unrelated information in separate Knowledge Sources to improve retrieval accuracy.
  • For example, company product information and internal travel policies should normally be stored separately.
  • After making changes to a Knowledge Source, use Refresh if required and wait for synchronization to complete.

Note: Knowledge source availability and processing may depend on the configured AI provider. Keep in mind that switching providers will require you to recreate your knowledgebase sources.

Create an AI Agent

Go to Admin > Integrations > AI > Add Agent, then choose the required agent type:

  • Receptionist: Company-oriented AI agent for basic call handling and routing
  • Personal Assistant: Tuned for handling calls for a specific user (e.g. Boss)
  • Customer Service Agent: uses Knowledge Sources to answer questions and resolve caller issues, escalating to a human when necessary.
  • More configuration details here.

Configure the AI Agent

Agent Info

Configure the general identity and call settings for the AI Agent.

General Settings
  • Extension  -  unique extension number for the AI Agent.
  • Assistant For  -  user represented by the Personal Assistant mode.
  • Department Membership  -  departments the AI Agent belongs to.
  • First Name / Last Name  -  spoken and visible identity of the AI Agent.
  • Assigned DID Numbers  -  direct inbound numbers that reach the AI Agent.
Voice and Call Settings

Configure:

  • Voice Style
  • Call Recording
  • Maximum Call Duration
  • Agent Talk Link - enables click-to-talk or chat access from a website.

Agent Type

In the Agent Type tab:

  • Select the Knowledge Sources the AI Agent can access.
  • Configure the Introduction Language.
  • Enable Allow Language Switching if required.
  • Configure the Welcome Message spoken to the caller.

Call Routing

Call Routing defines where different types of calls should be sent.

For Receptionist Agents:

  • Configure Route by Topic rules using clear and unambiguous descriptions.
  • Enable Allow Extension Routing by Name to allow callers to request a specific person, for example: "Please transfer me to George."

For example, a Route by Topic rule could state: If a caller reports an HTTP error, transfer the call to Technical Support.

For Customer Service Agents, two additional routing options are available:

  • Human Handoff  -  defines the default destination when the AI Agent cannot resolve the caller's issue or the caller requests a human.
  • Escalation Topics  -  routes specific topics to specialised destinations such as users, queues, or other Customer Service Agents.

Call Screening

Applicable to Personal Assistant Agents.

Configure how the Personal Assistant handles and prioritizes incoming calls.

  • Notify Boss (Default)  -  defines how the Personal Assistant handles normal calls, such as sending a screening message via Chat or Email, sending the caller to voicemail, or transferring the call to the user.
  • Block Call  -  define topics or keywords that identify unwanted calls, such as telemarketing, advertising, robocalls or cold calls, and configure the action to take.
  • Urgent  -  Interrupt Boss  -  define topics or keywords that identify urgent calls that should be transferred to the user.

Spam Filter

Spam Protection is enabled by default.

Use What Counts as Spam to define what should be considered spam or fraud and configure the appropriate action.

Available actions can include:

  • End Call
  • Transfer To
  • Send screening summary and disconnect
  • Send email and Disconnect

Options

Configure how the AI Agent responds to exceptional situations:

  • Abusive / Frustrated callers  -  define the action to take when a caller becomes hostile or abusive.
  • Non Responsive / Non Collaborative callers  -  define the action to take when the caller prevents the conversation from progressing.
  • AI unavailable  -  configure the routing destination used if the AI provider or AI engine cannot be reached.
  • Check availability before transferring  -  verify that the destination is available before attempting a call transfer.

AI Prompt

The AI prompt tab contains the AI Agent's preconfigured behaviour instructions.

Use Customize Prompt when you need to adjust:

  • Tone
  • Behaviour
  • Business rules
  • Policy boundaries
  • Instructions on what the AI Agent should or should not do

AI Models

AI providers regularly update models and may deprecate older versions. 3CX updates its recommendations as supported versions change.

Ensure the configured provider account can access the models required by your installed 3CX version.

See also

Last Updated
This document was last updated on 10 September 2026
https://www.3cx.com/docs/ai-agent-configuration/