Discussions from Ask The Experts 19: Inside Zoho Desk Spring Release 2025 : Zia in Focus

Discussions from Ask The Experts 19: Inside Zoho Desk Spring Release 2025 : Zia in Focus

Hello everyone,  
We had insightful discussions in both the sessions of Ask the Experts(ATE) 19, diving deep into engaging conversations around Zia and the spring release. Your enthusiastic participation and thought-provoking questions brought the sessions to life!  
In this post, we’re spotlighting the Q&A highlights focused exclusively on Zia.

1. Why are Zia Answer bots not performing as intended after integrating them with the internal Knowledge Base (KB)? Why is the bot unable to provide relevant answers when questions are asked in natural language?

Zia's Answer bot's response is based on how closely the user's query matches the content of your Knowledge Base(KB) articles. Zia operates using Retrieval-Augmented Generation (RAG) technology, which combines AI search and AI-generated responses. For AI search, we use AI training models specifically implemented for your knowledge base, while ChatGPT/Zia is used for generating the responses based on the service you select. Refer Setting up Generative AI Services: Zia or ChatGPT.
A. To improve this, we recommend following our best practices for training Zia Answer Bots. These include:
      i. Use simple and commonly-used phrases rather than jargons/isolated keywords in your help documents.
      ii. Include clear headings or sub-titles within your help documents to improve searchability and matching accuracy.
B. If you still do not receive relevant answers, we offer an improved Zia search powered by a new training model. If you would like to use it, please drop your request to support@zohodesk.com.
Additionally, we have introduced Generative AI powered by Zia, that is powered by open-source and run in Zoho's environment. To enable this, go to Setup(S) >> Zia >> Generative AI >> Services >> select Zia, under Choose service.  This is hosted entirely within Zoho's environment and is included at no additional cost and works with the Enterprise edition or Zoho bundles supporting Enterprise features.
 
2. How to optimize and incorporate the Zia bot within the Professional Edition?
Zia offers its complete range of functionalities exclusively within Zoho Desk Enterprise Edition and Zoho's bundle services.
However, there are specific Zia features available on the Professional Edition:
  a. Zia powered by ChatGPT: This integration is accessible within Zoho Desk, enabling responses based on open-domain data. In the Professional edition, Zia will  respond using information from the public domain, and the "Reply with Knowledge Base" feature is not available.
Additionally, Zia supports enhanced ticket handling through features like Ticket Summary, Zia Insights, Writing Assistance, and AI-generated content.
  b. Content Analysis: Launched in the recent spring update, this feature improves upon the existing spell-check capability and is accessible across all paid editions..
 
3. Is it possible to train Zia to provide answers based on resolutions from closed tickets rather than solely relying on the Knowledge Base?
Currently, Zia can only be trained using your Knowledge Base and not from tickets or their resolutions.
Tickets often contain sensitive customer data and personally identifiable information (PII), which should not be accessible to all agents or customers. Due to this privacy constraint, we currently do not train Zia using ticket data.
However, there's an option to add information from the Resolution under the Ticket tabs. While creating a resolution, the agent can select "Save And Add Article" to add the resolution to the Knowledge Base thereby giving Zia an option to train on the article. 
 


We plan to introduce a feature allowing agents to generate replies based on similar tickets. In this approach, Zia will reference similar tickets and their corresponding responses to suggest an answer. Instead of directly training Zia on potentially sensitive ticket data, this reply assistance feature will help agents by leveraging responses from comparable tickets.

4. Will Zoho offer additional AI models beyond Zia and OpenAI?  
Yes, we plan to introduce more AI models, primarily those hosted and managed by Zoho, considering the B2B nature of our services and ensuring data security and privacy.

5. How is data currently handled with OpenAI and Zia?  

Currently, when using OpenAI, fields marked as PII  are masked on the User Query or KB articles before sending them to Open AI for response generation alone and not for training. Similarly, Zia, powered by open-source models like Lama 3.1, uses data strictly for generation purposes. We've fine-tuned Lama 3.1 specifically for Zoho Desk requirements.

6. Which additional open-source models does Zoho plan to support in the future?  

Besides Llama, we plan to soon support additional models such as Qwen, and Mistral.

7. Will Zoho Desk allow users to integrate their own AI models?  

Yes, we are working towards creating a platform within Zoho Desk that allows users to bring their own open-source models or custom LLMs for various features.
 
8. How do we use the Zia GenAI-powered chat? Do we need to set it up with predefined answers?
To create an Answer bot, navigate to Setup > Zia > Answer Bot.The Answer Bot operates by learning from your existing knowledge base data. The Answer Bot leverages generative AI, which can either be powered by Zia using open-source technology or through OpenAI's ChatGPT integration, for which you would need an API key. In our recent spring release, we extended the availability of the Answer Bot across instant messaging (IM) channels. You can now deploy the generative AI-powered Answer Bot, trained specifically on your knowledge base, across IM channels such as WhatsApp, Telegram, Line, WeChat, Facebook Messenger, and your own website. You can also deploy the Answer Bot through ASAP within your Mobile App (SDK). The AI-powered Self-Service with Answer Bot can be powered with Zia(Llama) or ChatGPT.

9. I'm using Zia to predict the"Issue Theme" field automatically, and it shows as successful. However, when I open a ticket, it doesn't suggest any value for me to confirm. Why is this happening?
Regarding Zia's field predictions, there are two available options:
     i. Auto-update predicted value.
     ii. Allow agents to confirm the predicted values manually ("Let me confirm predicted value manually" option).
        To enable Field predictions, navigate to Setup (S) >> Zia >> Field Predictions >> Create A Field Prediction. In the Field Update mode field, you can choose to  predict the field automatically or confirm the predicted value manually.
If you're using the "Let me confirm" option, you need to manually confirm the predicted values. To do this, navigate to the Field Prediction section within the Ticket Detail View. You'll find a wand (star) icon in the sidebar (ibar). Click this icon to view the predicted values from Zia. Here, you can either confirm or reject the suggested value, and your choice will help improve Zia's training data.
We're actively working on integrating this feature directly into the ticket properties, so that Zia's recommended values will appear directly within the field itself.
 
10. Does Zia learn from our responses to tickets as well?
Currently, Zia does not learn from the responses you send. It does not have the capability to learn from the messages you type and send. We are working on expanding the capability for Zia to respond in the business tone based on the custom instructions added by agents for each feature.

11. Do I need to upgrade all licenses to Enterprise to use the new Zia LLM if I'm currently on Zoho One?
Yes, you have to upgrade Zoho Desk to the Enterprise edition to use Zia powered by open-source models. Zia is available by default in the Enterprise plan and all Zoho bundles supporting the Enterprise edition of Zoho Desk.
 

12. How does Zia determine that an agent needs to intervene in a ticket? Does it instruct the user to contact support, or can it notify agents to own the ticket?
Currently, Zia cannot request an agent to intervene in a ticket.
However, we have a feature called Field Predictions, which uses your historical ticket data to predict and assign ticket ownership. When a customer replies, Zia analyzes the customer's message and, based on its training data, assigns the ticket to an appropriate agent who has previously handled similar conversations. Currently, we do not have a feature that proactively prompts an agent to intervene.

13. While managing multiple departments, can we enable Zia Reply Assistance for just one department?
Currently, the Zia Reply Assistance is configured at the organization level, meaning it applies to all the departments. However, we are actively working on making it department-specific.

14. As I understand, does Zia use ChatGPT for translation purposes?
No, Zoho uses its own translation model. In our recent spring release, we introduced a feature called Writing Assistance. This feature allows you to draft replies in your preferred language (for example, English) and translate them into other languages like Spanish or Italian using Zia. In this scenario, Zia does not utilize ChatGPT. However, for summarizing content or providing reply assistance, we rely primarily on ChatGPT to generate responses directly in languages such as Spanish or Italian.
Additionally, Zia uses open-source models without any associated charges.
 
15. How can we utilize AI to analyze data and generate reports?
Currently, Zia is not available for the Reports module. We do have Zia dashboards to monitor Zia's performance, however, we are developing a feature that will allow you to interact with Zia conversationally to create reports on the go.
If you have a subscription to Zoho Analytics, you can already leverage AI to generate reports. Zoho Analytics integrates with Zoho Desk, allowing you to ask questions in natural language and receive AI-generated reports.

16. Can we obtain customer tone reports from Zia Insights?
Currently, Zia Insights, powered by open-source models, is in its initial phase and does not yet support sending insights directly to reports.
Another way to obtain customer tone reports from Zia insights is using Zia API. Identify the tone and record it on a custom field. Generate reports based on the custom field to get insights on customer tones. We are working on this capability to send Zia Insights results from individual tickets to reports and dashboards. 

17. Could you please clarify how Zoho ensures the protection of personally identifiable information (PII) in relation to data retention and Zia’s learning processes?
Regarding data retention, Zoho does not retain your data for training the generative AI models. Zia and ChatGPT utilize your data temporarily for generating responses. For other features, such as field predictions, all data remains within our Zoho ecosystem and does not share data externally for training purposes. Zoho complies with GDPR and HIPAA and sends data to Open AI only after masking Personally Identifiable information.

18. What permissions can be configured when creating knowledge base articles for use with the Answer Bot?  

The Answer Bot operates on two channels: one for agents and the other for customers, and uses permission-based generation. When creating knowledge base articles, you can set permissions such as "All Users," "Agents Only," or "Registered Users." Agents accessing the Answer Bot through the Ticket Detail view will have access to all articles, while end-users accessing via ASAP will only see articles marked for "All Users." Currently, the "Registered Users" permission is supported only for agents. Based on these permissions, the Answer Bot determines which articles it can use to generate responses.
We also have a private beta available for a new AI training model: New Retrieval System. If you're interested, please email us your details, and we can enable this feature to further enhance your Answer Bot's accuracy.
 
19. I currently have Generative AI enabled. What is the difference between ChatGPT and Zia? Should I switch to Zia under Generative AI?
ChatGPT is an integration with OpenAI, where you need your own API key and add credits to your wallet. With ChatGPT, your Zoho Desk data is sent outside Zoho servers to OpenAI for generating responses. On the other hand, Zia is powered by open-source language models, such as Llama, and your data remains within Zoho's servers.
If you switch to Zia under Generative AI, it will be included in your existing Enterprise plan without any additional cost. Zia also offers greater contextual intelligence regarding your data. For example, ChatGPT supports summarizing only up to five conversations per ticket, whereas Zia can summarize up to 30 conversations. Refer here for details. 

Here are the recordings from our Ask the Experts 19 sessions: 
Stay tuned on the Ask the Experts Community for more updates as we gear up for the upcoming sessions focussed exclusively on Zia and AI in Zoho Desk. 
Regards, 
Lydia | Zoho Desk

      Zoho Campaigns Resources


        • Desk Community Learning Series


        • Digest


        • Functions


        • Meetups


        • Kbase


        • Resources


        • Glossary


        • Desk Marketplace


        • MVP Corner


        • Word of the Day


        • Ask the Experts


          • Sticky Posts

          • Ask the Experts 10: A 5-hour online Q&A on Zoho Desk Best Practices

            Welcome to Zoho Desk's Ask the Experts session! This is a monthly discussion on our forums; wherein a panel of experts will take on questions specific to topics related to Zoho Desk. The panel will be available for a 5-hour period and will answer any
          • Ask the Experts 7: A 5-hour online Q&A on Telephony and Call Module

            Welcome to Ask the Experts session! This is a monthly discussion in forums; each session, a panel of experts will take questions on specific topics related to Zoho Desk. The panel will be available for a 5-hour period and answer any questions posted here.
          • Ask the Experts 5: Online Q&A on Zoho Desk Extensibility

            Welcome to Ask the Experts session! This is a monthly discussion in forums; each session, a panel of experts will take questions on specific topics related to Zoho Desk. The panel will be available for a 5-hour period and answer any questions posted here.
          • Ask the Experts 4: A 5 hour online Q&A on agent productivity

            Welcome to Ask the expert session! This is a monthly discussion in forums; each session, a panel of experts will take questions on specific topics related to Zoho Desk. The panel will be available for a 5-hour period and answer any questions posted here.
          • Ask the Experts 3: A 5 hour online Q&A on reports and dashboards

            Welcome to Ask the expert session! This is a monthly discussion in forums; each session, a panel of experts will take questions on specific topics related to Zoho Desk. The panel will be available for a 5-hour period and answer any questions posted here.

          Zoho CRM Plus Resources

            Zoho Books Resources


              Zoho Subscriptions Resources

                Zoho Projects Resources


                  Zoho Sprints Resources


                    Zoho Orchestly Resources


                      Zoho Creator Resources


                        Zoho WorkDrive Resources



                          Zoho CRM Resources

                          • CRM Community Learning Series

                            CRM Community Learning Series


                          • Tips

                            Tips

                          • Functions

                            Functions

                          • Meetups

                            Meetups

                          • Kbase

                            Kbase

                          • Resources

                            Resources

                          • Digest

                            Digest

                          • CRM Marketplace

                            CRM Marketplace

                          • MVP Corner

                            MVP Corner




                            Zoho Writer Writer

                            Get Started. Write Away!

                            Writer is a powerful online word processor, designed for collaborative work.

                              Zoho CRM コンテンツ


                                ご検討中の方

                                  • Recent Topics

                                  • Columns in Reports Showing Count instead of Amounts

                                    I have a table in a modular where we can add our bill claims. I want to show these in the attached table. The dates are right, but they are grouped by Row Count. I want the amounts showing where the row count numbers are. Anyone know how to do this? I
                                  • Support Plan: Recuring Issue

                                    Hi Zoho Team, Could you please look into this recurring alert and provide clarification on why this restriction is still in place? This issue has become a bottleneck in our workflow, significantly limiting our automation capabilities. We are unable to
                                  • Introducing PRM: Build, manage, and scale your partner ecosystem

                                    Growing a partner ecosystem is a good problem to have. What starts as a handful of partners can quickly turn into a maze of spreadsheets, emails, and disconnected processes. More partners mean more opportunities, greater reach, and new ways to grow
                                  • Tags on individual ticket comments and replies, with color coding and a filter

                                    In Zoho Desk you can tag a ticket, but you can’t tag the individual comments and replies inside it. For teams with long, structured ticket threads, that’s a big gap. The problem Our tickets can easily reach 50+ comments and replies. Many of them are specific,
                                  • Sharing View Only Portal

                                    Im looking at Youtube videos on how to share a view only link to my projects. Everyone has the screen with Manage Users. I don't have it. Is that an old version or new version? I can't see how to send a view only link to clients. There is a Profiles and
                                  • Allow widgets to be placed between native sections in the Ticket Properties panel

                                    One of our biggest frustrations with the Tickets module is how rigid the Ticket Properties panel is. Every section there is built only from native Zoho Desk fields. We can add sections, rearrange fields, and pick layouts, but we can’t put anything custom
                                  • How Do I Refund a Customer Directly to Their Credit Card?

                                    Hi, I use books to auto-charge my customers credit card. But when I create a credit note there doesn't seem to be a way to directly refund the amount back to their credit card. Is the only way to refund a credit note by doing it "offline" - or manually-
                                  • Merge Tickets Directly from Contact Page in Zoho Desk

                                    Dear Zoho Desk Support Team, We are writing to request a new feature that would allow users to easily merge tickets directly from the contact page in Zoho Desk. Currently, the only option to merge tickets is from the Tickets list view page, which can
                                  • Enhancement Request – Allow cashiers to collect payments and partial payments for outstanding credit invoices directly from Zoho POS Billing App

                                    We are testing Zoho POS for a retail business with multiple physical stores and have identified an important limitation in the cashier workflow. When a sale is completed using Credit Sale, Zoho POS correctly creates an unpaid invoice and the outstanding
                                  • How Can I Collect Payments for Credit Sales Directly from Zoho POS Billing App?

                                    We are currently testing Zoho POS for a retail business and have encountered an issue with collecting payments on outstanding invoices from customers who purchase on credit. When we process a Credit Sale, Zoho POS correctly creates an Unpaid Invoice.
                                  • Zoho POS Mobile Sales Price Conflicts & Pricing Discrepancies

                                    We are seeing recurring Zoho POS Mobile conflicts tied to the Sales Price field, even though drivers are not manually changing item pricing. We have also noticed small price differences between POS transactions and Books, sometimes only a few cents. Devices
                                  • GrassHopper VOIP Integration

                                    Does Zoho Plan to integrate with Grasshopper to allow the Telephony hookup in Zoho Desk?  If not, Can this be passed along for consideration 
                                  • Creator -Dynamic addition of Customer Portal User Licenses

                                    Hi, We have a Creator App for B2C about to get released. We are experiencing the Portal User license challenge. Unable to predict the number of users who will download and Subscribe. When a User is about Subscribe and the portal licenses does not exists,
                                  • Reminder Settings - Time Tracker

                                    On the time tracker in Reminder Settings I created a reminder according to the Zoho manual. But a manager asked me to change the message that goes in the email. Is it possible to change the message? I didn't find that in the Zoho manual. Another question: I configured to receive the reminder everyone who logged in less than 40 hours. Does Zoho consider less than 40 hours of the current week or the whole month? Another situation, I put it so that I and another specific user would receive the notification,
                                  • New in Cadences: WhatsApp follow-ups, upgraded limits, and options for add-ons

                                    Hello everyone, We're rolling out two key updates to help you engage better and scale smarter with Cadences in Zoho CRM. Reach customers on WhatsApp, directly from Cadences Previously, Cadences have enabled you to automate follow-ups through emails, calls,
                                  • Specific ListView Canvas on Canvas Home Page Always Loads Most Recent ListView, Not the One Specified

                                    I had mentioned this to ZOHO, but I mainly wanted to see if others in the Community are also facing this problem. I created a Canvas ListView for a Custom Module, and then created a Canvas Home page (technically on a tab item, but I'm not sure if that
                                  • This user is not allowed to add in Zoho. Please contact support-as@zohocorp.com for further details

                                    Hello, I am the Super Administrator of the Zoho Mail organization for carrytrail.com. The domain has already been verified, but when I try to create the user. I receive the following error: “This user is not allowed to add in Zoho. Please contact support-as@zohocorp.com
                                  • Tip #92 – Organize your support operations with Departments – ‘Insider Insights’

                                    Hello Zoho Assist Community! As a support team grows, so does the complexity. Different customers, different products, technicians spread across regions, and each group needing its own way of working. When everyone operates from a single shared space,
                                  • Introducing Zoho Office Desktop

                                    Hi users, We are excited to announce Zoho Office Desktop, a single app to install, update, and open Zoho Writer, Sheet, Show, and PDF Editor on Windows and macOS. It includes: One home for every app: Choose the apps you want, and a guided installation
                                  • How Can You Find Broken Internal Links Without Checking Every Page Manually?

                                    Broken internal links are a common technical SEO issue. They can send visitors to missing pages, interrupt navigation, and make website maintenance more difficult. On a large website, checking every link manually is simply not practical. So, how can you
                                  • Zoho Writer for Android: Q2 2026 updates

                                    Hi users, We are excited to announce the Q2 2026 updates for Zoho Writer for Android. This includes: Formatting parity with the web app: Choose from multiple ordered and unordered list styles, adjust line spacing, apply your custom paragraph styles, change
                                  • Zeptomail in the blacklists

                                    Hello, I noticed some hard bounces while sending emails, and upon checking the details, I see that we have been added to the blacklists of certain spam lists: Bounce category: Policy failure Reason: ip-issues Message: 5.7.1 Service unavailable; client
                                  • ZohoBooks - "Account transactions" report doesn't have any "Desciptions"

                                    Hi, I'd like to push for this to be included in ZohoBooks: In a "account transactions" report all the numbers are right, but I'd really like to see the "Description" as part of this report, i.e. the line-item-description as I would see it in the bank statement. Essentially all you see is a list of numbers adding up to the total. It is very difficult to see if things are right without being able to see what exactly each transaction refers to. Going into each transaction one-by-one is not a workable
                                  • Zoho Projects | Q3 Updates

                                    Hello everyone, Here's a roundup of everything we released from July to September. We have added some new features as well as improved some of the existing ones. Project Financials Finance Integration Integrate your Project with Zoho Books, Zoho Invoice,
                                  • Meet your customers on Arattai, from inside Zoho CRM

                                    Hello everyone, Your customers reach you on the apps they already use. Zoho CRM now supports one more: our very own Arattai! When someone messages your Arattai Business number, the conversation arrives in the Messages module in CRM, right beside your
                                  • Running Balance

                                    Please add automatically Running balance in ledger view. Taking lot of time, every time to add manually
                                  • MAKING ENTRY TIME MORE USER FRIENDLY AND FASTER O PREVENT TAB TIME

                                    I AM CURIOUS TO KNOW IF WE CAN MAKE IT MORE USER FRIENDLY WHILE MAKING BILLS , I MAJORLY USE OVER DESKTOP SO I AM SUGGESTING TO REMOVE TAB TIME WHILE ENTERING BILL OR MAKING INVOICE DIRECT JUMP TO ONLY REGULAR PARTS OF THE BILL . YOURS RAKESH 782866
                                  • Unable to export reports despite enabled report export permissions

                                    Hi Zoho Community, We are unable to export reports in Zoho CRM. When attempting an export, we receive the following error: “Cannot Export Report — You do not have permission to export one or more modules used in this report. Please contact your administrator.”
                                  • Add Payment Information (like Bank details)

                                    I am using the Free plan of Zoho Books. I need to add the bank details/ UPI details on the invoice. How can I do that. I have added the details in the Bank Section.
                                  • Keep Sensitive Customer Data Private with Field Masking in Zoho CRM

                                    Hello CRM community, Customer records in your CRM are often accessible across multiple teams, but not every team needs visibility into every field. A non-sales team, for instance, has no real need to see a contact's mobile number, and a support agent
                                  • Generate a Zoho Sign link

                                    From time to time I get a response "I never received your you e-document for electronic signature" is there a way to generate a Zoho Sign link to share.
                                  • Notes - Reaction Buttons

                                    Using the native notes option within CRM is fine, it works and the RTF features are great, however, would it be possible - if there isnt already something in place, where we can add a reactions button, similar to teams/whatsapp to show that its been read
                                  • Generate a link for Zoho Sign we can copy and use in a separate email

                                    Please consider adding functionality that would all a user to copy a reminder link so that we can include it in a personalized email instead of sending a Zoho reminder. Or, allow us to customize the reminder email. Use Case: We have clients we need to
                                  • Need help with importing expenses

                                    I'm using the template downloaded from the application. When I try to import my expenses, I get the message: Duplicate entry in the Expense Date column. Ensure it contains unique values. None of the rows will import. There are duplicate dates, but they
                                  • #12 Bringing In A Second Pair Of Hands

                                    Meera's studio became a two-person business in month five. Adding the second person took ten minutes. Working out why Meera herself was showing up as Staff took considerably longer. The Usual Way To Do This Covered in our published General FAQ, with the
                                  • How can I add a Custom Field (or Customer_name) to a picklist?

                                    Our workflow is Shopify-->SO -->Picklist-->Package-->Shipment. We would like to have the Picklist template to include a custom field "Customer_Notes" (we have created this field already). This way we get alerted when a customer has notes on their account.
                                  • Header Line in Quote product rows

                                    I believe this is an essential feature that Zoho should provide us, when adding products we want the ability to add titles for our product, in quotes: The Solution/Category Title Product1 Product2..... and then it would show the sub-total of that title 
                                  • Widget Height were destroyed

                                    All widget heights in the Details Canvas view are broken. Moderation Update: This issue with widget heights in Client Script popups and flyouts has been resolved. Widgets should now display at their expected heights.
                                  • How to Fix the Corrupted Outlook 2019 .pst file on Windows safely?

                                    There are multiple reasons to get corrupted PST files (due to a power failure, system crash, or forced shutdown) and several other reasons. If You are using this ScanePST.EXE Microsoft inbuilt recovery tool, it only supports the minor corruption issue
                                  • 👍 Zoho CRM's Notes now gets Reactions and a new look

                                    Moderation update: Currently available in the following DC's CA, AU, CN, UAE, JP, SA - All Editions EU - Free, Standard and Professional Hello everyone, Notes help users capture important updates, collaborate with teammates, and maintain context for records.
                                  • Next Page