Conversation Handoff
When a conversation gets too long, ask the assistant to prepare a handoff summary, then continue in a new conversation without explaining the background again
The longer you chat in the same conversation, the more the assistant needs to remember. When the content approaches its limit, the assistant starts to lose track of what you discussed at the beginning.
With “Conversation Handoff,” you can ask the assistant to organize your current progress into a handoff summary, then start a new conversation with one click to continue your work. The assistant in the new conversation reads this summary first, so you do not need to explain the background again. The original conversation is also preserved for you to revisit at any time.
Use Case
A marketing specialist is planning an autumn product launch in MaiGPT. She has spent the afternoon discussing the venue, guest count, budget allocation, and introduction scripts for two featured products with the assistant. She notices that “Context Usage” below the input box has reached 82%, and a prompt bar above the input box suggests preparing a handoff.
She clicks “Prepare Handoff.” The assistant creates a handoff summary listing the event goals, the confirmed venue and budget, the introduction scripts in progress, and the remaining tasks. After reviewing the summary, she clicks “Continue in New Conversation.” The screen switches to a new conversation, and the assistant first says, “We've picked up where you left off. The current tasks are…” She then asks the assistant to write the invitation without pasting the earlier discussion again.
Where You Can Use It
MaiGPT
Organization members
The MaiGPT conversation page works the same way in every layout. Once the global conversation handoff feature is enabled, you can use it without configuring a separate platform switch
Web Chat
Website visitors, organization members
The Web Chat conversation window embedded on a website is also available to visitors who are not logged in. After the global conversation handoff feature is enabled, an administrator must also turn on “Enable Conversation Handoff” for that conversation platform (off by default)
The Web Chat assistant must use Agent mode
The assistant prepares the handoff summary. If the assistant connected to Web Chat does not use “Agent mode” (or Agent Teams), it cannot generate a handoff summary. MaiGPT is not affected.
Enable in Web Chat
Conversation handoff and context usage in Web Chat have two independent switches, configured separately for each conversation platform and off by default. Visitors to a customer's embedded Web Chat see neither handoff prompts nor context usage until an administrator enables them. “Show Context Usage” takes effect as soon as it is enabled. “Enable Conversation Handoff” takes effect only after MaiAgent enables the global conversation handoff feature.
The customer service manager at an online retailer notices that website visitors often ask about several orders in a single conversation. As the conversation gets longer, the assistant loses track of order numbers mentioned at the start. She wants visitors to first see how much conversation space they have used, so she opens Feature Settings for the official website's Web Chat conversation platform, enables only Show Context Usage, and saves. When visitors reopen the conversation window and receive the assistant's first reply, “Context Usage” and a percentage appear below the input box.
1. Open the Conversation Platform's Feature Settings
In the admin console, go to Customer Service Conversations → Conversation Platforms. Edit the Web Chat platform you want to enable, then click Feature Settings in the left menu.
2. Enable the Switches You Need and Save
The “Basic Features” section has two switches. You can enable either one or both:
Enable Conversation Handoff
When the global conversation handoff feature is enabled, a handoff prompt bar appears starting at 80% context usage, the assistant can generate a handoff summary card, and visitors can continue in a new conversation. If the global feature is disabled, turning on this switch produces no visible change
Show Context Usage
Displays the context usage percentage below the input box
After configuring the switches, click Save.
View Context Usage
A “Context Usage” row below the conversation input box contains a short progress bar and a percentage. It shows how much of the assistant's available memory space this conversation has used.
MaiGPT: Always displayed; no configuration is needed.
Web Chat: Displayed only after an administrator enables Show Context Usage for that conversation platform (see Enable in Web Chat). This switch is independent of “Enable Conversation Handoff.”
Display rules:
In a new conversation, the row appears only after the assistant's first reply.
It updates after each completed assistant reply.
The maximum displayed value is 100%.
The closer usage gets to 100%, the more advisable it is to continue in a new conversation. Once it reaches 100%, the assistant starts losing access to the earliest conversation content.
Three Ways to Start a Handoff
1. Ask the Assistant Directly
At any time, you can enter and send a message like this:
Hand off this conversation to a new conversation
The assistant prepares a handoff summary (see “Handoff Summary” below). You do not need to wait for usage to increase before handing off.
2. Use the Prompt Bar
When context usage reaches 80%, a prompt appears above the input box:
This conversation is approaching its context limit. We recommend preparing a summary and handing off to a new conversation to continue
The prompt bar has two buttons on the right:
Prepare Handoff: Automatically sends “Hand off this conversation to a new conversation” for you, and the assistant prepares the handoff summary.
Close: Hides the prompt bar so you can continue in the original conversation.
After you close it, the prompt bar appears again when usage crosses the next threshold (90%, 100%). At 100%, the prompt changes to:
This conversation has reached its context limit. To preserve the completeness of the conversation content, we recommend preparing a summary and handing off to a new conversation to continue
3. Respond to the Assistant's Proactive Question
When context usage reaches 80%, the assistant adds a question at the end of that reply, such as:
This conversation is getting quite long. Would you like me to summarize the key points and hand off to a new conversation to continue?
If you agree with a response such as “Yes” or “Sure,” the assistant prepares a handoff summary.
If you say “No” or ignore the question, the assistant continues as usual without repeating the question every time.
The assistant reminds you once more at each of the 90% and 100% thresholds.
The assistant's question and the prompt bar appear at the same time. You can use either method to start the handoff.
Handoff Summary
The assistant's summary remains in the original conversation as a “Handoff Summary” card with five sections:
Goals
What this conversation aims to accomplish
Decided
Confirmed decisions and conclusions
In Progress
Items still being worked on and their current status
To Do
What needs to be done next
Key References
Important numbers, names, and names of previously uploaded files
The summary uses the language of your conversation. Sections with no content are hidden.
At the bottom of the card is a “Continue in New Conversation” button, with a note beside it indicating which new conversation will be created.
The system does not switch conversations automatically
After the handoff summary is generated, you remain in the original conversation. Review the summary and confirm it is correct before clicking “Continue in New Conversation.” If important information is missing, ask the assistant to add it in the original conversation, or request another handoff.
You can hand off the same conversation more than once. Each handoff creates a new summary, and only the latest summary displays the button.
Continue in a New Conversation
The Assistant Confirms the Continuation Status
After reading the handoff summary, the assistant first confirms the continuation status in one sentence, such as “We've picked up where you left off. The current tasks are…”. You can then chat as usual.
After the handoff, the conversation list shows the relationship between the two conversations. The original is labeled “Handed Off To,” and the new one is labeled “Continued from Original Conversation.” The button in the original conversation changes to “Go to New Conversation”. Clicking it again returns to the same new conversation without creating another one.
If creating the new conversation fails, the screen displays “Failed to create a new conversation. Please try again,” and the button becomes available to click again.
What You Can Do After Continuing in a New Conversation
Continue your work directly: The assistant already knows the goals, decisions, and tasks in the handoff summary, so you can give it the next instruction immediately.
Use the same assistant: The new conversation uses the same assistant as the original, with the same model, knowledge base, and tool settings.
Revisit the original conversation: The complete original conversation remains in the conversation list for you to open and review whenever needed.
Hand off again: When the new conversation gets long, you can hand off to another new conversation. Usage is calculated afresh in each new conversation.
The assistant in the new conversation can see only the handoff summary, not the other messages in the original conversation. The following content is not carried over:
Files and images uploaded in the original conversation (the summary lists only their filenames)
Files generated in the original conversation and Canvas content
Conversation details outside the summary
If the new conversation needs this content, upload the files again or paste the relevant passages into the new conversation.
Notes for Web Chat Visitors
Web Chat visitors who are not logged in can also hand off conversations using the steps above. Keep in mind:
The new and original conversations are saved only in the visitor's current browser. They are not available in another browser or on another device.
After the visitor's conversation history expires, the original conversation can no longer be opened, but an already created new conversation remains usable.
Unsupported Scenarios
Other conversation platforms such as LINE, Facebook Messenger, Microsoft Teams, and Slack
Usage and prompt bars are not displayed, and the assistant does not proactively ask about handoff
Automatically switching to a new conversation
Not supported. You must click “Continue in New Conversation” yourself
Handing off to a different assistant
Not supported. The new conversation always uses the original assistant
Carrying the original conversation's attachments and generated files into the new conversation
Not supported. Upload them again in the new conversation
Compressing content and continuing within the same conversation
Not supported. A handoff always opens a new conversation
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I hand off while usage is still low?
Yes. Enter “Hand off this conversation to a new conversation” directly. You do not need to wait for the prompt bar.
Can I still hand off if I accidentally closed the prompt bar?
Yes. Ask the assistant to hand off directly in the input box.
How is context usage calculated?
The percentage represents how much of the assistant's available memory space the conversation currently occupies, estimated from the conversation content and the assistant's model. Different models can remember different amounts, so conversations of the same length may have different usage percentages.
Can I keep chatting in the original conversation after a handoff?
Yes. The original conversation is not locked, but its usage is already high, so we recommend continuing in the new conversation.
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