October 23, 2026
TL;DR:
- A cleaner Invent
Every page got a polish: clearer layouts, tabs right under the header and simpler settings, so you find things faster. - Email actions
Ask Invent and your agents can now search your Gmail and Outlook inbox. - Tip: agent notes
Agents can leave private notes in chats for your team. Pair them with email search.
It's Friday, and two updates land: a cleaner design across Invent, and email actions in Ask Invent and your agents.
A cleaner Invent
We went through Invent page by page. Each page opens with a clear header, a back button that names where you came from, and tabs right under it. Filters sit on the left of every list. Tables share one look, and row actions stay pinned on the right. Settings pages save one way, with one Save button per page.
The small things changed too. Icons come in three sizes, statuses use one colored dot (green is active, amber is pending, red needs you), and errors show right under the field you need to fix.
Search your Gmail and Outlook with AI
A customer writes "I sent this back weeks ago." Did they? Before, you opened Gmail in another tab and scrolled. Now open Ask Invent and type: "Has Laura emailed us about a return?" It searches your Gmail or Outlook and answers with the emails it found: who sent them, when, and what they said, attachments included.
It works in plain words, so you never need Gmail's search tricks. Ask Invent turns your question into the right search, reads the emails it finds, and answers in a sentence or two.
What you can ask
The questions support asks every day, now answered from your inbox:
- Returns and refunds. "Did Laura already send the photos of the damaged item?" "Have we refunded order #4821 before?"
- Invoices and payments. "Find the invoice Northside Dental sent in September." "Did this client email us a payment receipt?"
- Order history. "What did Marco order last time, and when did it ship?"
- Past complaints. "Has this customer complained about late delivery before?"
- Promises your team made. "What discount did we offer Ana by email?" "Did anyone reply to her last message?"
- Contracts and quotes. "Find the signed quote from Kellerman Builders."
- Before you reply anywhere. A customer writes on WhatsApp. Ask what they already said by email, so you don't ask them to repeat it.
Each search reads up to 10 emails, with their attachments, so a question about one customer or one order works best.
How to turn it on
- Ask Invent to connect your Gmail or Outlook, or connect it yourself in
Connections. Sign in once, and you're done. - Ask about an email, a customer or an order.
Your email stays in your account. Invent searches it only when you or your agent ask.
Tip: agents can leave notes for your team
Your agents get the same email skill. Pair it with something few teams use yet: an agent can leave a private note right in the chat, and the customer never sees it.
Sharing a use case here. In Ask Invent, in a few simple steps:
1. "Create an agent for duplicated tickets and run the routine every time the chat is handed to a team member. The agent should look for the same name or email through Gmail."
Be specific: add a time window, like "look for emails from the past 7 days" or "the past 15 days." The better you ask, the more effective your agent is.
2. Invent asks to connect Gmail, then creates the Duplicate Checker agent and its routine. One click on Connect is all it takes.
It also gives the agent the actions it needs to search Gmail and leave notes, so there's nothing to set up by hand.
The routine is what makes the agent work on its own. Open the agent and go to Routines: Duplicate Ticket Check runs on Inbox › On Conversation Handed Off, so every time a chat is handed to your team, the agent starts a fresh run. Each run is a chat you can open and join, so you always see what the agent did.
A routine can also be Autopilot, where the agent decides when to run next, or a Webhook, so another app can start a run when a new order or form reply comes in. All the options are in the Routines guide.
3. Next time a duplicate ticket comes in and is handed over to our team, the agent has already left a private note in the chat: every Gmail match, and a verdict.
Laura doesn't have to repeat herself, and nobody opens a second ticket for the same return.
More ideas for smarter handoffs:
- Customer history. When a chat is handed to your team, note what the customer said on other channels and by email.
- Before the refund. Note past refunds and returns for this customer, from your inbox and email.
- VIP heads-up. Note when a customer has a big order history or an open deal.
- Closing summary. When a chat closes, leave a two-line summary for whoever talks to them next.
Connect Gmail or Outlook once, by asking Ask Invent, and both Ask Invent and your agents can use it. New to agents? Start with AI Agents for Business.
Why it matters
The answer to most support questions already sits in your inbox. Now Invent finds it for you, in a workspace that is easier to read. More on running support with AI in our AI customer support guide.
FAQs
Can Invent search my Gmail or Outlook emails?
Yes. Ask Invent to connect your Gmail or Outlook, then ask Ask Invent or an agent. It searches your inbox and returns the matching emails, with sender, date, text and attachments.
Does my AI assistant read my email when it talks to customers?
No. Email search is for Ask Invent and your agents, the AI that works for your team. Your customer-facing assistants don't get it.
How many emails can Invent search at once?
Each search returns up to 10 emails. Ask about one customer, one order or one topic, and ask again to dig further.
With love,
Invent Team
Conversational AI for Business Growth
