> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.chatcrafterai.com/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Platform concepts

Understand the core ideas behind ChatCrafterAI.

## The Big Picture

**You create AI Agents** → **Agents live on Channels** → **Agents answer using Knowledge Base**

That's it. Everything else builds on these three concepts.

## AI Agents

An agent is your conversational AI. It's what your users talk to.

**What an agent does:**

* Understands what users say
* Looks up answers in your knowledge base
* Sends relevant responses
* Can trigger actions (send email, create Stripe invoice, etc.)

**Every agent has:**

* **Name** - What you call it ("Support Agent", "Sales Assistant", etc.)
* **Personality** - How it talks (friendly, professional, technical)
* **Knowledge Base** - Documents it can search
* **Channels** - Where it operates (web, WhatsApp, Telegram, etc.)
* **Configuration** - AI settings, actions, integrations

## Channels

A channel is where your agent appears. Deploy once, reach customers on multiple channels.

**Available channels:**

* **Web Widget** - Embed on your website, mobile-responsive
* **WhatsApp** - Customers message on WhatsApp
* **Telegram** - Telegram agent integration
* **Instagram** - Instagram Messenger support

**Cross-Channel Identity:** Same customer = same conversation across all channels. Perfect for continuity.

## Knowledge Base

Your agent's brain. Upload documents, websites, or datasets. Your agent searches this to answer questions.

**What goes in a Knowledge Base:**

* **PDFs** - Manuals, guides, contracts
* **Websites** - Your entire website crawled automatically
* **Word documents (.docx)** - Reports, documentation
* **CSV files** - Bulk data import
* **Text files (.txt)** - Notes, FAQs, scripts
* **Markdown files (.md)** - Documentation, README files

**How it works:**

1. You upload content
2. AI converts it to searchable chunks
3. Customer asks question
4. Agent searches similar chunks
5. Agent includes relevant context in its answer

## Conversation Modes

Control how your agent behaves:

**AI-Only Mode**

* Agent uses AI + Knowledge Base
* Natural, flexible responses
* Best for support, Q\&A

**Rich-Only Mode**

* Agent uses predefined flows and buttons
* Structured conversations
* Best for lead capture, forms

**Hybrid Mode**

* AI + structured flows together
* Natural until user needs a form
* Best for conversions + support

## Integrations

Connect to business tools your agent can interact with.

**Payment:** Stripe (charge customers, check balances)
**E-commerce:** Shopify (check orders, recommend products)
**Support:** Zendesk (escalate tickets, check status)

A single agent can use multiple integrations simultaneously.

***

**Ready to use these concepts?** Head to [Your First Agent](../quick-start/your-first-agent)