Tool nodes
A tool is a capability an AI node may choose to call. You attach it to the node's tool connector, describe what it does, and the model decides when the request needs it — filling in the parameters itself.
The seven tools
| Tool | Lets the agent… |
|---|---|
| QnA | Answer from a defined set of questions and answers |
| API | Call any HTTP endpoint — look something up, place an order, check a status |
| Send an email when the conversation calls for one | |
| Chat Transfer | Hand the conversation to a human in Cognify |
| Chat Transfer (Generic) | Hand it to whatever system you wired up instead |
| Follow Up | Schedule a follow-up rather than answering now |
| Table Insert | Write a row into a Cognify panel |
A GPT Model node with four tool nodes attached to its tool connector, each labelled with its function
Screenshot to be addedDescribing a tool well
This is the part that decides whether an agent is good. The model reads your descriptions
and nothing else, so vague descriptions produce vague behaviour. Use the
DESC keyword on every parameter:
{{DESC 'The order reference the customer quoted, format ORD-12345'}}Weak
'the id' — the model has to guess which id, in what format, from where.
Strong
'The order reference the customer quoted, format ORD-12345' — says what, what shape, and where it comes from.
QnA tool
A defined set of questions and answers the agent can draw on. Narrower than a knowledge base and more predictable — right for the handful of questions that must always be answered exactly the same way: opening hours, returns policy, where to find an invoice.
API tool
The most flexible tool, and the one that turns a chatbot into an agent. The model decides when to call it and supplies the parameters.
Configure it like the API
action, but describe the parameters with DESC rather than filling them
in.
Email tool
Lets the agent send mail when the conversation warrants it — a confirmation, a copy of something, an internal alert. If the mail must always go, use the Email action instead.
Chat Transfer
The escalation route. When the agent cannot help — or the customer asks for a person — it calls this tool and the conversation moves to a human in Cognify, where the record and its history already are.
Follow Up
Schedules a follow-up instead of answering immediately — useful when the answer depends on something that has not happened yet, or when the right move is to check back later.
Table Insert
Writes a row into a Cognify panel. This is how a conversation becomes a record: the agent collects a name, an email and a requirement, then files it as a lead or a ticket with no human retyping anything.
See Working with Cognify.
How many tools is too many
Every tool is described to the model on every call, so more tools means more tokens and a harder choice. If an agent starts picking the wrong tool, the usual causes are:
- Two tools whose descriptions overlap — merge them, or sharpen the distinction.
- A description that says what the tool is rather than when to use it.
- Too many tools for one agent — split into two workflows, or route with a Decision node first.