Available on the Enterprise plan.Only workspace admins can link and manage workspace context docs.
Overview
Workspace context docs let admins link existing Docs as persistent knowledge for Dovetail AI. Once linked, that content is injected into every Chat, Agent, and Ask Dovetail conversation across the workspace — so you don’t have to explain who you are, what you build, or how your team talks about customers every time you ask a question. If a linked doc is updated, the context refreshes automatically. There’s nothing to re-link or re-save.How workspace context docs work
Where they apply
Workspace context docs apply everywhere Dovetail AI shows up — Chat, Agents, and Ask Dovetail — for every user in the workspace. Applies to Slack and Teams too, if you’ve connected Chat in Slack and Teams. Access is still governed by permissions. See Permissions and sharing below.How content is processed
- Short docs are used as-is.
- Longer docs are automatically summarized so they fit cleanly into the AI’s context window without crowding out other context or degrading response quality.
- Edits to a linked doc are picked up automatically on the next interaction — you never need to re-link.
How context docs fit with other context
Chat draws on more than just workspace context docs. Here’s how the layers relate:
Context docs teach the AI who you are. Your projects and channels teach it what customers said. For the full breakdown of how all context layers combine, see Chat: Technical overview.
What to include (and what to leave out)
Good candidates for a context doc:- Company and product context
- Strategy and priorities — OKRs, focus areas, what’s out of scope
- Customer and market context — ICP, segments, personas
- Product domain knowledge — features, workflows, known limitations
- Pricing and packaging
- Brand and tone guidelines
- Research frameworks and report templates
- Glossaries and preferred terminology
- Raw research data (interviews, transcripts, tickets) → belongs in a Project or Channel, not a context doc
- Findings from a specific study → use a Project Doc or that project’s overview instead
- A one-off answer to a single question → just ask Chat at the right scope
- Highly sensitive content you don’t want broadly accessible → see Permissions and sharing
Set up workspace context docs
- Go to Workspace settings → AI → Custom context.
- Search for and select existing Docs to link.
- Save your selection.
- Confirm sharing — linked docs need to be shared with the workspace at Can view access or higher (see Permissions and sharing).
- Test it — open Chat at the workspace level and ask something that depends on background knowledge, like “What’s our ICP?” or “How should I refer to our product tiers?”
Best practices for writing context docs
Keep each doc focused. One purpose per doc. Link several focused docs instead of a single catch-all. Use clear structure. Headings, bullet points, and labeled sections help the AI parse a doc correctly — especially once it gets summarized. Be explicit. Spell out preferred terminology (“customers,” not “users”), product and plan names, what’s in scope vs. out of scope, and any compliance or privacy rules. Separate facts from behavior. Company info, product specs, and glossaries are facts — they belong in a context doc. Tone, formatting, and citation preferences are behavior — they’re often better set through your workspace’s custom instructions, with a context doc as backup for anything that needs more detail. Keep docs maintained. Treat context docs as living reference material. Outdated strategy or product info leads directly to outdated AI answers. Don’t duplicate project-level content. Project-specific research context belongs in project overviews and project Docs, not workspace context docs.Permissions and sharing
Linked docs don’t have to be shared workspace-wide. Chat still respects every existing Dovetail permission — the AI can’t surface content a user can’t already see.- If a linked doc has restricted permissions, only users with at least Can view access to that doc will have it applied to their chat context.
- For the context to benefit the whole workspace, share each linked doc with the entire workspace at Can view access or higher.
Starter pack: docs to link
A focused starting set covers most workspaces well. Create each as its own Doc, fill in the details, and link all five in Workspace settings → AI → Custom context.1. Company & product overview
Give the AI foundational knowledge about who you are and what you build.2. Terminology & glossary
Keep language consistent across every AI-generated response.3. Brand voice & AI response guidelines
Shape how the AI communicates — tone, format, and behavioral rules.4. Customer & market context
Help the AI understand who your customers are and how you talk about them.5. Research & reporting standards
Keep AI-generated Docs and summaries aligned with your team’s methodology.Test your setup
Once your docs are linked, try a few questions that only a well-informed teammate could answer well:FAQs
How many docs can I link?
How many docs can I link?
[Confirm current limit before publishing.]
Do context docs replace search?
Do context docs replace search?
No. Context docs provide background knowledge about your company and product. Chat still searches your workspace data for every question and cites its sources — context docs just make those answers better informed.
What happens if I unlink a doc?
What happens if I unlink a doc?
Its content is removed from the AI’s context on the next interaction.
What's the difference between workspace context docs and a project overview?
What's the difference between workspace context docs and a project overview?
Workspace context docs carry company-wide reference knowledge that applies everywhere in Dovetail AI. A project overview carries context specific to a single project.
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