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Variables

Variables insert values that change from call to call, like a customer’s name or today’s date, into your agent’s prompt.

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Syntax

Wrap the variable name in double curly braces:

Hello {{customer_name}}! I see you're calling about order {{order_id}}.

At runtime, each variable is replaced with its value for that call.

A variable name must:

  • start with a lowercase letter
  • contain only lowercase letters, numbers, and underscores
  • be 40 characters or fewer

The editor marks anything else inside {{ }} as a validation error. For example, {{Customer_Name}}, {{1st_name}}, and {{customer_name|there}} are all rejected.

The Variables panel

On the Prompt tab, click the {} icon in the prompt toolbar to open the Variables panel. It has three tabs:

TabWhat it shows
User definedVariables you’ve used in the agent prompt. Set a default value for each one here.
SystemValues the platform fills in on every call. See System variables.
APIResponse variables captured by your API calls. You add these on the API call itself; use Configure API calls to get there.
Variables panel with User defined, System and API tabs
The Variables panel, opened from the prompt editor

User-defined variables

Type {{variable_name}} in the agent prompt and the variable appears under User defined. Only the agent prompt is scanned. A variable you use only in the First message doesn’t show up in the list, so use it in the prompt too if you want to set a default for it.

Variables work in the agent prompt and the First message, and both are filled in at the start of each call. If a variable in the First message has no value, it’s left out of what the agent says rather than read aloud. Voicemail end text on the Speech tab is the exception: it’s spoken exactly as written, so variables there aren’t filled in.

There’s no inline fallback syntax such as {{customer_name|there}}. Set the default in the panel instead.

To pass a value for a single call, include it in the variables object when you start the call through the API. See Start an outbound call.

System variables

The platform sets these on every call. You can’t set them yourself: if you pass a value for one of these names when you start a call, it’s ignored.

VariableValue
{{call_id}}Unique identifier for the call
{{conversation_type}}The channel: webcall, chat, telephonyOutbound, or telephonyInbound
{{agent_number}}The agent’s phone number
{{user_number}}The user’s phone number
{{current_date}}Today’s date, in readable form
{{current_time}}The current time, in readable form
{{current_day}}The day of the week
{{agent_gender}}Male or Female, based on the agent’s voice
{{default_language}}The agent’s primary language, for example English
{{supported_languages}}Comma-separated list of the agent’s languages
{{timezone}}The timezone set under Agent settings, for example (GMT+5:30) Chennai, Kolkata, Mumbai, New Delhi

API variables

An API call can save fields from its response as variables, which you then use in the prompt like any other variable. See API Calls.