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Config

Set Up Intercom Fin AI Agent

Configure Intercom Fin AI agent for automated support resolution

Instructions

Set Up Intercom Fin AI Agent

Configure Fin AI to resolve inbound support conversations autonomously using your knowledge base, with escalation rules for questions it cannot answer.

Prerequisites

  • Intercom account (Essential plan minimum, $29/mo)
  • Help articles published in Intercom Help Center (see intercom-help-articles)
  • Intercom Messenger installed on your product

Step 1: Enable Fin AI Agent

In the Intercom API or dashboard, enable Fin on your workspace. Fin is an add-on billed at $0.99 per resolution (you are only charged when Fin successfully resolves a conversation without human handoff).

Via the Intercom REST API, configure Fin's behavior:

PUT https://api.intercom.io/ai/agent/config
Authorization: Bearer {access_token}
Content-Type: application/json

{
  "enabled": true,
  "languages": ["en"],
  "tone": "professional",
  "answer_length": "concise",
  "handoff_behavior": "offer_to_connect"
}

Step 2: Connect Knowledge Sources

Fin answers questions from three source types:

  1. Intercom Help Center articles (automatically indexed when published)
  2. External URLs — add your docs site, changelog, API reference: 
    POST https://api.intercom.io/ai/content_sources
{
  "type": "url",
  "url": "https://docs.yourproduct.com",
  "crawl_depth": 3,
  "refresh_frequency": "weekly"
}
  3. Custom answers — manually authored Q&A pairs for questions not covered by articles: 
    POST https://api.intercom.io/ai/custom_answers
{
  "question": "What is your refund policy?",
  "answer": "We offer full refunds within 30 days of purchase. Email billing@yourproduct.com or reply here and we'll process it within 2 business days.",
  "tags": ["billing"]
}

Step 3: Configure Escalation Rules

Define when Fin should hand off to a human agent:

PUT https://api.intercom.io/ai/agent/escalation_rules
{
  "rules": [
    {"trigger": "user_requests_human", "action": "handoff_immediate"},
    {"trigger": "confidence_below", "threshold": 0.5, "action": "handoff_with_context"},
    {"trigger": "max_bot_replies", "count": 4, "action": "handoff_with_context"},
    {"trigger": "sentiment_negative", "action": "handoff_with_context"},
    {"trigger": "topic_match", "topics": ["billing-dispute", "data-deletion", "security-incident"], "action": "handoff_immediate"}
  ]
}

Critical: never trap users in a bot loop. If Fin cannot resolve in 4 exchanges, escalate with full conversation context.

Step 4: Set Audience Targeting

Control which users see Fin vs. direct human support:

PUT https://api.intercom.io/ai/agent/targeting
{
  "default": "fin_first",
  "overrides": [
    {"segment": "enterprise_plan", "behavior": "human_first"},
    {"segment": "churn_risk_critical", "behavior": "human_first"}
  ]
}

Start with Fin for all users, then carve out VIP segments for human-first routing.

Step 5: Verify Deployment

Test Fin's behavior by opening a conversation from a test user account:

  1. Ask a question covered by your help articles — Fin should resolve it
  2. Ask an off-topic question — Fin should say it cannot help and offer human handoff
  3. Type "talk to a human" — Fin should immediately hand off
  4. Ask a billing dispute question — should trigger immediate escalation

Query Fin metrics via API:

GET https://api.intercom.io/ai/agent/metrics?period=7d

Response includes: total_conversations, resolutions, handoffs, avg_resolution_time, resolution_rate, csat_score.

Pricing

  • Fin AI Agent: $0.99 per resolution (minimum 50 resolutions/mo = $49.50/mo minimum)
  • Intercom Essential base: $29/seat/mo
  • Proactive Support Plus (optional): $99/mo
  • intercom.com/pricing

Error Handling

  • If Fin returns no answer, check knowledge source sync status via GET /ai/content_sources
  • If resolution rate is below 30%, add more custom answers for frequently asked questions
  • If CSAT is below 3.5, review Fin conversations for incorrect answers and update knowledge sources

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