AI Connectors | Channel Automation

Open original guide with interactive examples →

Watch the walkthrough

A narrated two-minute introduction and how-to. Turn on captions with the CC button. The names, numbers and workspace on screen are example data.

The short version AI Connectors is already available in every workspace; there is nothing to switch on. Open More → Settings → AI Connectors, click Copy next to the connector address, add it to Claude or ChatGPT as a custom connector, sign in with your usual CRM login, choose your workspace and click Allow access. Then ask away. Prefer help? Contact our support team and we’ll set it up with you.

Why it matters

The answers your team needs are in the CRM, but finding them means opening reports, filtering lists and adding things up.

BeforeDigging through reports and lists to answer one question, or waiting for someone who knows where to look.

NowAsk in plain English, in the AI assistant you already use, and get an answer from your own workspace in seconds.

Why that helpsFaster follow-ups and quicker decisions, with nothing to export and nothing that can change your data.

Behind the scenes, AI Connectors uses MCP (Model Context Protocol), the open standard Claude and ChatGPT use to connect to business tools. You don’t install anything or write code.

Find it and set who can use it

Sign in and open the right workspace.
In the dock, click More, then Settings.
In the sidebar, under Integrations & Intake, choose AI Connectors.
Access → Who can use them: Owners and Admins are ticked by default. The workspace owner can also tick Managers or Agents. Agents only ever see the contacts they can already see.
Check Your access. Continue when it says You can use AI Connectors in this workspace.

Below that, Connect Claude or ChatGPT shows the connector address with a Copy button and short steps for each app.

Settings, AI Connectors, showing Access with role checkboxes and the Connect Claude or ChatGPT card

ExampleSettings → AI Connectors, as the workspace owner sees it.

Your connector address (it’s the same for every workspace; the sign-in decides which workspace is used):

https://mcp.channelautomations.com/mcp Copy

Check the address before you paste it. If the address in your Settings differs from the one above, contact our support team before continuing.

Connect Claude

Use claude.ai in a computer browser. Custom connectors are available on Claude’s Free, Pro, Max, Team and Enterprise plans (Free allows one). On Team and Enterprise, your Claude organization owner adds the connector first, in Organization settings → Connectors; then each person connects their own CRM login.

Open Customize → Connectors (some versions put Connectors under Settings).
Choose Add → Add custom connector.
Name it Channel Automation and paste the connector address. Leave the optional client ID and client secret fields blank.
Click Add, then Connect. Claude opens our approval page (see Approve and test).
In a chat, open + → Connectors and turn on Channel Automation. If Claude asks permission for the first lookup, choose Allow.

Claude’s menu labels change from time to time. Claude’s own help: adding a custom connector.

Connect ChatGPT

Use chatgpt.com in a computer browser. Custom connectors need Developer mode, which depends on your ChatGPT plan and your organization’s settings. If you can’t find it, ask your ChatGPT administrator.

Open your profile menu → Settings and turn on Developer mode (under Security and login, or Apps → Advanced settings on some accounts).
Go to Plugins (or Apps), click + or Create, and choose to add a custom MCP server.
Name it Channel Automation and paste the connector address as the Server URL.
Pick OAuth as the sign-in method. Leave manual client credentials blank.
Confirm, click Create, then sign in with Channel Automation and approve your workspace.
Start a new chat, type @ and select Channel Automation.

ChatGPT’s own help: Developer mode and MCP apps.

Approve your workspace and test it

Your AI app opens our approval page. Sign in with your usual CRM login if asked.
Check the app name matches the app you’re connecting, and read the read-only note.
Under Workspace, pick the workspace this app may read.
Click Allow access. Cancel declines.

Run a first check. In a chat with Channel Automation turned on, ask Use Channel Automation to tell me which workspace I’m connected to. Then ask it to find a contact you know, and compare the answer with the CRM.

One connection, one workspace. Switching workspace in the CRM doesn’t move an existing connection. Connect again and choose the other workspace when you need it.

The Connect Claude approval page with a workspace selected and the Allow access button

ExampleThe approval page, with an example workspace.

What to ask

Make sure Channel Automation is turned on in the chat, then ask a specific question with a date range. Ask the assistant to say when information isn’t available rather than guessing.

Follow upUse Channel Automation to show which leads haven’t heard from us in three days.

Find a contactUse Channel Automation to find Ava Martinez and summarize what’s happened so far.

CampaignsHow did our appointment campaign perform this month? State the date range.

TeamSummarize leads and bookings for the last 7 days, and flag any missing data.

TextingCheck my texting health for the last 7 days and explain any delivery problems.

AutomationsExplain why the automation stopped for this contact: Noah Bennett.

Results depend on your role. Owners, admins and managers see workspace-wide numbers; agents see the contacts they can already see and their own work. Check important numbers in the CRM before acting on them.

Prefer to stay in the CRM? When Ask appears in your dock, you can type the same questions there with no outside app.

Stay in control

Everything lives on the same Settings → AI Connectors page.

Connected apps table listing Claude and ChatGPT with who connected each, when, last used, and a Disconnect button

ExampleConnected apps: every app connected to this workspace, who connected it, and when it was last used. Disconnect stops it right away.

Activity table listing each lookup with time, who, via which app, what was looked up and the result

ExampleActivity (owners and admins): every lookup, newest first: who asked, through which app or key, what they looked up, and whether it worked.

Disconnect an app: click Disconnect beside it. Remove it in Claude or ChatGPT too. Owners and admins can disconnect anyone’s connection; everyone else can disconnect their own.
Disconnecting stops new lookups. It doesn’t erase answers already saved in an AI chat.
Integration keys (owners and admins) are for tools like n8n or your own scripts. A key acts as the person who created it, can only read data, and expires within 90 days.

Privacy and safety

Read-only. Claude and ChatGPT can look things up. They can’t send messages, change contacts, book appointments or pause sequences.
One workspace per connection. A connection only sees the workspace chosen when it was approved.
Same permissions. A person sees through AI Connectors only what they can already see in the CRM. Team notes are hidden from agents.
Your login, never a password in chat. Sign-in uses your CRM login on our page. Never paste a password, key or code into a chat.
Every lookup is recorded in Activity.
Answers sent to Claude or ChatGPT are handled under your account with that provider. Follow your company’s data-sharing policy.

Who can do what

Role	Can do
Owner	Choose which roles can use AI Connectors, connect apps, disconnect any app, create integration keys, and see Activity.
Admin	Connect apps (on by default), disconnect any app, create integration keys, and see Activity.
Manager	Connect apps and ask workspace-wide questions, when the owner allows managers.
Agent	Connect apps and ask about the contacts they can already see, when the owner allows agents.
Inbox-restricted	Can’t connect Claude or ChatGPT. May use Ask inside the CRM, for the contacts they can see.

Troubleshooting

What you see	Why	Fix
“Your role isn’t allowed to use AI Connectors yet.”	The owner hasn’t ticked your role.	Ask the workspace owner to tick it in Access → Who can use them.
No workspace to choose on the approval page	Wrong login, or none of your workspaces allow your role.	Sign in with your CRM login, then check your role with the owner.
Add custom connector, Create or Developer mode is missing	Your AI plan or organization doesn’t allow custom connectors.	Ask your Claude or ChatGPT administrator.
The AI answers without your CRM data	Channel Automation isn’t turned on in that chat.	Turn it on (Claude: + → Connectors; ChatGPT: type @) and ask again.
Reconnect or sign-in expired	Sign-ins expire from time to time, about every 30 days.	Reconnect and sign in again.
Wrong workspace, or a contact is missing	The connection reads the workspace you approved, within your access.	Connect again and choose the other workspace.
Daily limit reached	Each workspace has a daily lookup limit.	It resets at midnight UTC, or contact our support team.

Still stuck? Contact our support team with the AI app, the workspace name, the exact message and the time. Hide customer details in any screenshot, and never send a password, key or code.

Questions

Do we need to turn it on? No. It’s available in every workspace. Owners and admins can connect today.

Can the AI send texts or change records? No. Connections from Claude and ChatGPT are read-only.

Does it cost extra? Ask your account manager about your plan. You also need a Claude or ChatGPT account that allows custom connectors.

Can our team use different apps? Yes. Each person connects their own app with their own login, and every connection is listed under Connected apps.

Can you set it up with us? Yes. Contact our support team and we’ll walk through it with you.

Channel Automation · Help · Last updated 2026-10-14. Questions? Ask your account manager, or open Help Docs inside the app — the same guidance lives there.