When the AI agent replies
Last reviewed:
The agent only answers DMs that nothing else handled: opt-outs, chats your team took over and matching automations always come first. Its mode then decides whether it replies to every remaining DM, only to certain topics, only after an automation hands over, or not at all.
The four modes
| Mode | What happens |
|---|---|
| Every DM | Replies to every DM that no automation handled. |
| Only specific topics | Replies only when the message is about one of your topics. The AI judges the meaning, so “how much is it?” and “what does it cost?” both match “pricing”. |
| Only when handed over | Stays silent until an automation reaches a “Hand to AI agent” step. From then on it answers that contact. |
| Paused | Never replies. Your settings are kept, so you can switch it back on anytime. |
Whatever the mode, a contact an automation handed to the agent keeps talking to the agent until you change the handling in the inbox.
Who gets a DM first
Every incoming DM goes through the same order. The first one that applies wins:
- 1 Opt-out
If the message is only “stop”, “unsubscribe” or similar, the contact is unsubscribed and gets a short confirmation.
- 2 Team
If the chat is with your team, nothing automatic replies.
- 3 Waiting step
If an automation is waiting for an answer (an email, a button, a follow), the message continues it.
- 4 Automations
A switched-on DM or story-reply automation whose keyword matches starts.
- 5 AI agent
Only now the agent checks its mode, topics and excluded folders.
Topics
In “Only specific topics” mode, list topics in plain words, separated by commas, e.g. “pricing, availability, booking a call”. The AI picks one of your topics or none; greetings and small talk count as none, so the agent doesn’t jump into every “hi”.
Without an AI key (only on self-hosted setups) topics are matched by words instead of meaning.
Excluded folders
Pick folders the agent must never answer, e.g. friends, suppliers or VIP clients. Contacts in those folders are left to you, whatever the mode.
Questions? Answers.
Does the agent answer comments?
No. Comments are answered by your automations. The agent answers DMs, including the DMs that follow a comment automation.
Why didn’t the agent reply to a DM?
Usually an automation handled it, the chat is with the team, the contact is in an excluded folder, or the message wasn’t about one of your topics. See “AI agent doesn’t respond”.
Still stuck? Write to us and tell us what you tried: hello@dmowl.com