Test your assistant before it goes live

Testing lets you see how your assistant answers before customers do. You can chat with it, have it call your own phone, and save test conversations that AIVA checks every time you publish. Each publish also saves a version you can go back to. You need an assistant with a greeting and instructions. Test chats and test calls use your own OpenAI key, so OpenAI bills that usage like any other conversation.

Chat with your assistant

The quickest check is a text chat.

1. In the sidebar, under AI Configuration, open Assistants.
2. On the assistant's row, click the Test icon. The Test Playground opens.
3. Type a message the way a customer would, for example "Are you open on Saturday?", and press Enter.
4. Keep going for a few turns. Click Reset Chat to start a fresh conversation.

You can also chat from inside the editor: open the assistant, go to the Test tab and choose Try it.

If you see Testing with prompt only (no knowledge base), the chat is using only the assistant's instructions, not what you added in AI Training. Add knowledge first if you want to test answers that depend on it.

Hear it on a real call

To hear the actual voice, have the assistant call you.

1. Open Analytics, the first item in the sidebar.
2. In the setup checklist, find Hear your assistant on a first call and click Call it now.
3. Choose the Assistant.
4. Enter Your phone number in international format: + then the country code, for example +14155550123.
5. Click Call me now, then answer your phone and have a chat.

This goes through the same checks as any outbound call: your plan or trial must be active, your OpenAI key must work, the assistant needs a phone number linked, and normal calling hours and do-not-contact rules apply. If something is missing, the dialog shows the reason.

Save test conversations

Test conversations are short scripted scenarios with a description of what a good answer must include. Once saved, they run automatically every time you publish.

1. Open the assistant and go to the Test tab.
2. Choose Test conversations.
3. Click Add test conversation.
4. In Caller scenario, describe what the caller wants, for example "caller wants to book Tuesday at 3pm".
5. In What a good answer must include, describe the right answer, for example "confirms Tuesday 3pm and asks for a name".
6. Click Save.

Add a handful that cover your most common calls: booking, hours, prices, a request to speak to a person, and a question the assistant should refuse.

To check them without publishing, click Run tests. You can also run a single test with Run on its row. The Latest run view shows which tests Passed or Failed, and marks any that Got worse since the last run.

Publishing: the test gate

When you click Publish, AIVA runs your saved test conversations against the draft first.

• If they all pass, the draft goes live and you see Published.
• If any fail, the assistant isn't published. A Tests failed dialog shows how many tests passed and which ones failed, with the reason for each. Fix the instructions or knowledge and try again, or click Publish anyway if you're sure.
• If the tests couldn't run (for example, your OpenAI key has a problem), you'll see Tests couldn't run with the reason. Fix the cause, or click Publish anyway.
• If you edit the draft while the tests are running, AIVA asks you to review it and publish again.

Before the tests run, you may also see Before you publish warnings, for example if the greeting doesn't say the caller is talking to an AI. Choose Go back and fix or Publish anyway.

Versions and restoring

Every publish saves a numbered version. Open the assistant and go to the Versions tab:

• The newest version is marked Live.
• Click Compare on any version to see what changed, and Hide diff to close it.
• Click Restore to go back to that version.

Restoring makes that version live straight away, from the next call. Any unpublished draft changes are discarded. A restore doesn't delete anything: it creates a new version (marked Restored from v and the number), so you can undo it the same way.

Common questions

What's the difference between Save draft and Publish? Save draft keeps your changes without affecting live calls. Publish makes them live, after your tests pass.

My assistant shows "Live · edits not published". Is that a problem? No. Callers get the last published version. Your saved edits wait in the draft until you publish.

Do I need test conversations to publish? No. With none saved, Publish goes straight through. They're there to catch mistakes before customers hear them.

Next steps

• Teach your assistant about your business
• Review calls and results
• Connect Twilio and a phone number