Workflows

Trigger automated workflows directly from chat — mention them with @ or use them through agents.

What are Workflows in Chat?

Workflows are multi-step automations built in the Workflow Builder. Normally you run them from the Workflows page, but you can also trigger them directly from a chat conversation — either by mentioning a workflow with @ or by chatting with an agent that has workflows attached as actions.

When a workflow runs from chat, you see real-time progress and the final result inline in the conversation. No need to switch to the workflow run history.

Two ways to trigger workflows from chat:

Method	How it works
Mention in chat	Type @ in the message input, select a workflow, and send your message
Agent with workflows	Chat with an agent that has workflows added as actions — the AI decides when to call them

Triggering a workflow from chat

Type @ in the chat input to open the mention menu. You'll see a Workflows section listing all workflows you have access to. Select one to tag it in your message.

When you send the message, the AI reads your request and decides whether to trigger the tagged workflow. If it does, you'll see a confirmation panel before the workflow actually runs.

Workflows tagged via @ stay associated with the conversation. If you tag a workflow in one message, the AI can still use it in follow-up messages within the same conversation — you don't need to re-tag it every time.

Only workflows that meet all of these conditions appear in the mention menu:

• The workflow belongs to your workspace
• You have access to it (public, workspace-wide, or shared with you)
• The workflow is active (published)
• The workflow uses a supported trigger type (see below)

Supported trigger types

Not every workflow can be triggered from chat. Only these trigger types are supported:

Trigger type	Available in chat?	Notes
Manual	Yes	Simple confirm-and-run — no input fields
Form	Yes	Shows the form fields inline in chat for you to fill out
Scheduled	Yes	Can also be triggered on-demand from chat
Webhook	No	Must be triggered by an external HTTP call
Integration	No	Must be triggered by an integration event

Using workflows through agents

Agents can have workflows added as actions in the agent builder. When you chat with the agent, the AI automatically decides when to call a workflow based on your request — just like it decides when to use any other tool.

Adding a workflow to an agent

1. Open the agent in the Agent Builder
2. Go to the Actions section
3. Click Add Tool and switch to the Workflows tab
4. Select the workflow you want to attach

The Workflows tab in the agent builder shows both active and inactive workflows. This lets you pre-attach a workflow that's still in development and activate it later without editing the agent again.

How the AI decides to call a workflow

Each attached workflow becomes a tool the AI can call. The tool name is derived from the workflow name (e.g., a workflow named "Summarize Report" becomes the tool workflow_summarize_report). The AI reads the workflow's description and trigger fields to decide when the tool is relevant to your request.

For form-trigger workflows, the AI sees the form field definitions (names, types, descriptions) as the tool's input schema. It can fill in form fields from your message context — for example, if you say "summarize this document" and there's a FILE field, the AI will reference the conversation's attachments.

For manual and scheduled workflows, the tool input is a simple confirmation — the AI proposes triggering the workflow, and you confirm or decline.

Confirmation flow

Every workflow triggered from chat requires your explicit confirmation before it runs. Workflows can perform external actions (sending emails, creating records, calling APIs), so you always get the chance to review before execution.

Manual and scheduled workflows

You see a compact panel with the workflow name and two buttons:

• Trigger — confirms and starts the workflow run
• Decline — cancels the workflow call; the AI is informed and can suggest alternatives

Form workflows

The form fields are rendered inline in the chat. If you have file attachments in the conversation, FILE fields are automatically pre-filled:

• Single-file fields get the most recently uploaded file
• Multi-file fields get up to 10 of the most recent files from the conversation

You can review, modify, or clear the pre-filled values before submitting. Click Trigger to run the workflow with the form data, or Decline to cancel.

Pre-filled files are suggestions based on what's in the conversation. Always double-check that the right files are attached before triggering, especially in conversations with many uploaded documents.

Live progress and results

Once you confirm, the chat shows real-time status updates:

State	What you see
Running	Animated "Running [workflow name]..." indicator
Completed	"Ran [workflow name] in X seconds" with the output displayed below
Failed	Red error panel with the failure message and the failed node name
Declined	Amber "Workflow declined" notice

When a workflow is triggered, the workflow progress is visible, as long as the workflow is running.

As soon as the workflow returns an output via an Output node, the output value is shown directly in the chat message as a formatted result panel. If there is no Output node, you see a generic "completed" message without detailed output.

Access control

Workflow access in chat follows the same permission model as everywhere else in Odeus, with one important nuance for agent-attached workflows.

When you mention a workflow with @, it only appears in your mention menu if you have access to it. If you can't see it, you can't trigger it.

When a workflow is attached to an agent, the access check happens at execution time, not when you open the agent. This means:

• You can chat with an agent that has a workflow you don't have access to
• The AI knows the workflow exists and might try to call it
• When it does, you immediately get an "Access Denied" error explaining that you don't have permission
• The AI then informs you and can suggest alternatives

If you see "You do not have access to the [workflow name] workflow" in a chat with an agent, contact your workspace admin to request access to the underlying workflow. Having access to the agent does not automatically grant access to its attached workflows.

Workflow access level	Can trigger from chat?
Public	Yes — all workspace members
Workspace	Yes — all workspace members
Private (shared with you)	Yes
Private (not shared)	No — Access Denied

Limitations

Limitation	Details
Mobile	Workflows cannot be mentioned or triggered from the mobile app. The mobile mention menu does not include workflows.
Agent-to-Agent (A2A)	When an agent calls another agent via A2A, the sub-agent cannot trigger workflows. Workflow tools are disabled in the A2A execution path to prevent recursive triggers.
File pre-fill cap	Up to 10 conversation attachments are used for pre-filling FILE fields. Older files beyond this limit are not included.
Tool name length	Workflow tool names are capped at 63 characters (a provider-level constraint). Very long workflow names get their tool name truncated.
One call per response	The AI calls a workflow tool only once per response. It won't trigger the same workflow multiple times in a single reply.
Confirmation always required	Every workflow trigger from chat requires explicit user confirmation. There is no auto-execute mode for chat-triggered workflows.
Unsupported triggers	Workflows with webhook or integration triggers cannot be triggered from chat. These trigger types are designed for external event sources.

Frequently asked questions

Yes. Type `@` in any chat, select a workflow from the mention menu, and
send your message. No agent needed. The AI will decide whether to trigger
the workflow based on your request.



The chat keeps checking until the workflow reaches a terminal state. You'll
see a "Running..." indicator for as long as it's in progress. There's no
timeout — even workflows that run for minutes will eventually show their
result.



Not from the chat UI directly. If you need to cancel a running workflow, go
to the workflow's run history in the Workflows section.



Check that the workflow is **active** (published), uses a supported trigger
type (manual, form, or scheduled), and that you have access to it. Webhook
and integration-triggered workflows never appear in the menu.



Yes. If an agent has multiple workflows attached, the AI can call different
workflows in different messages. However, it will only call one workflow
per response — it won't trigger two workflows in the same reply.



Yes, for FILE-type form fields. When a workflow has FILE fields and the
conversation has attachments, those fields are pre-filled with the most
recent files. Multi-file fields get up to 10 files; single-file fields get
the most recent one. You can always change or clear these before confirming.