Open the AI assistant and what each tab does
In the editor, click the yellow ✨ AI assistant button in the top bar (or More (⋯) → AI assistant). From the dashboard, use the ✨ AI assistant menu and pick a document. The panel has nine tabs, from Ask to Scan.
Updated 3 min read Counts toward ai credits
The AI assistant is a side panel in the editor. Everything it does works on the document you have open, and every paid action shows its credit cost on the button before you run it.
Open it in the editor
With a document open, the panel is always one click away, in every mode:
- Top bar: click the yellow ✨ AI assistant button at the top right. On narrower windows it shows only the sparkles icon. Click it again to close the panel.
- More menu: click More (⋯) at the top right and choose AI assistant.
- Phone: tap the ⋯ button in the editor's top bar to open the More sheet, then tap AI assistant.
Each of these opens the panel on the Ask tab. Two other buttons open it on a specific tab: More → Check spelling in the tool toolbar opens Proofread, and Detect fields (in Create form mode) opens Fields. Close the panel with Close AI assistant.
Open it from the dashboard
Step 1: Open the AI menu
In the dashboard top bar, click the ✨ AI assistant button.
Step 2: Pick what you want
Choose Chat with a PDF or Summarize a PDF. To start from nothing, choose Create a document instead.
Step 3: Choose the document
Pick one from Your documents, or click Upload a new file. PDF, Word, PowerPoint, Excel and images work.
Step 4: Use the panel
The editor opens with the AI assistant panel on the right. Switch tabs at the top of the panel.
You can also start from All tools: each AI tool, such as Chat with PDF or the AI PDF translator, opens the same panel on the right tab.
The tabs
| Tab | What it does | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| Ask | Answers questions from this file only, with quotes linked to their pages. | 1 per message |
| Summary | Key points with page links, in Brief, Standard or Detailed length. | 2 |
| Search | Finds passages by meaning, even when they use different words. | 1 |
| Translate | Makes a new translated copy; the original stays untouched. | 1 per page |
| Edit | Turns an instruction into edits you accept one by one. | 2 |
| Fields | Proposes fillable form fields for blanks, boxes and signature lines. | 3 |
| Proofread | Lists spelling, grammar and style issues to accept or dismiss. | 1 per page |
| Signers | Suggests who signs and where, then opens the send dialog. Nothing is sent. | 3 |
| Scan | AI OCR and Restore a scan for pages with no text layer. | 2 / 2 per page |
The top of the panel shows how many credits you have left (# credits left), including purchased ones. Results from most tabs are saved under Previous results so you can reopen them without paying again.
Long and scanned documents
The AI reads a set number of pages per document on each plan: 30 without an account, 100 on Free, 600 on Pro and 2,000 on Business. When a document is longer, the panel says so ("AI reads the first … pages on your plan") and answers say which pages were skipped. Pages are never dropped silently.
A large document is read in the background the first time you open the panel. You'll see Reading this document… with a percentage; you can start typing and AI actions wait until it's ready. Pages with no text layer (scans, photos) get a warning with a Scan tools link, because the AI can't read them until you run OCR.
I closed the panel. How do I get it back?
Click the yellow ✨ AI assistant button in the editor's top bar, or choose More (⋯) → AI assistant. On a phone, tap ⋯ → AI assistant. Your chat and Previous results are still there.
The panel says "AI isn’t available right now".
The AI provider can't be reached. Your document is safe and nothing was charged. Try again later.
Can I use AI without an account?
Yes. Guest drafts include 5 AI credits. A free account adds 20 every month, and your draft comes with you when you sign up.
Tools in this article
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Related articles
- How AI credits workEvery AI action costs a fixed number of credits, shown on its button before you run it. Your plan includes credits every month; an AI credit pack adds 500 credits for $5 that never expire and are used after the monthly ones.
- Ask questions about a PDF and check the cited pagesOpen the document, go to the Ask tab of the AI assistant, type a question and click Ask. Answers come only from that file and list Sources: click a p. 4 chip to jump to the quoted page. Each message costs 1 credit.
- How accurate AI answers are, and how to check themAI answers can be wrong or miss nuance, so every result links to the pages it came from and chat quotes are checked word for word against the page. Check numbers, dates and obligations against the cited page before you rely on them.
- What happens to your documents when you use AIAI features send your document's text to OpenAI's API with storage turned off; scan restoration sends page images to fal.ai. Your documents aren't used to train models. In Settings → Data & privacy you can choose Private AI or delete stored AI data.