A table can show your data in many ways, but sometimes none of the built-in displays fits what you or your team need. With AI views, you describe what you want in a chat, and AI builds a custom, interactive view of your table’s data, such as a dashboard, a branded search experience, or an org chart. No coding is required.
This article explains what AI views are, how to create, edit, troubleshoot, and share them, and what to know about current limitations during the beta.
Availability: AI views are in open beta. The feature is turned on automatically for every workspace that hasn't turned off AI - no setup needed. During open beta, everyone can create one AI view for free and use AI views without limits. Creating additional AI views requires a paid Doc Maker license, which includes unlimited AI view creation.
AI views basics
An AI view is a custom view of a table that AI builds for you from a written prompt. You describe the experience you want, and AI plans and generates it using the data in that table. For example, you could turn a table of customer feedback into a heat map that highlights the most common trends. You can then interact directly with the AI view to update the table data.
You don’t need to be a software engineer to create one. Behind the scenes, AI writes custom code for your view. If you’re curious, you can see the code files by going to Edit > clicking the three-dot menu > selecting Files.
Common use-cases
People use AI views for a wide range of things. Common types include:
Dashboards: Summarize and visualize your table data at a glance, such as a launch tracker or a sales pipeline overview.
A new look for your table: Create a branded search experience, or a view type that isn’t currently available, such as a kanban board or a custom form.
Interactive visualizations: Build things like org charts and seating charts that you can click, filter, and update.
Looking for examples and inspiration? Check out this AI views example gallery.
Create an AI view
Tip: If this is your first time creating an AI view, we suggest starting with a non-critical doc or table. This allows you to experiment with the feature without fear of disrupting any important underlying table data.
To create an AI view, follow these steps:
Either create a new table, or locate an existing one that you wish to build off
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Hover over the table, click the plus icon (+) below the table title, and select AI view
Tip: This will add the AI view as a tabbed view, but you can click and drag it onto the canvas if you prefer for it to be a standalone view. Learn more about tabbed vs. standalone views here.
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Now chat with AI about what you want to build. We suggest starting with shorter prompts and building from there. Answer any follow-up questions the AI may have, and finally click Build it to see the first iteration.
Tip: Looking for some example prompts to get started? Check out the example gallery here. At the start of each example, you’ll see a callout with the initial prompt.
Continue chatting as needed to fine-tune your AI view. If you leave the chat, you can re-open it by clicking Edit in the upper-right corner of your view. Learn more about editing AI views in the section below.
Edit an AI view
To edit an AI view, simply hover over the view and select Edit in the upper-right corner. This will open the chat experience for the AI view. You can send additional prompts here to further adjust the view.
From this chat experience, click on the three-dot menu in the upper-right. Here you will find options for…
Files: This is where the underlying code of the AI view lives. You can copy this code directly if you need to make a copy of the AI view.
Versions: Here you will find the version history of the view. You can use the Restore button to restore the view to an older version.
By default, anyone with edit access to the doc can also edit the AI view - including both the UI and the underlying table data.
Doc editors can also open the chat for the AI view, where they will see the full prompt history. A per-user chat experience is not yet available.
To restrict editing of the AI view, we recommend using table or page locking. Learn more in the FAQ below.
Troubleshoot your AI view
If you’re running into issues with your AI view, here are some helpful troubleshooting steps to try:
Reload the doc. Some errors clear on their own after a few seconds.
Open the chat and ask the AI to fix the error. Click Edit in the upper-right corner of the AI view to access the chat. Most errors clear in one or two prompts.
Check version history. If a recent change broke it, restore an earlier version from the chat panel. Edit > three-dot menu > Versions.
Check the base table. Look for a column that was renamed, deleted, or given a new type. Look for cells with error messages, rich text in text columns, etc.
If the view is empty after a copy or duplicate, this is a known issue. Copying isn’t yet supported for AI views. Instead, copy the code for the original AI view by clicking on Edit > three-dot menu > Files. Find more info in the FAQs below.
Common error messages
Most errors can be resolved by simply copying the error message and pasting it into the chat of the AI view. From there, the AI view should be able to fix itself. But if that doesn’t work, here are a few common error messages and how to resolve them:
Error |
Meaning & Fix |
|---|---|
“Something went wrong and this update couldn’t finish” |
Update failed; try a shorter prompt or split into smaller steps |
“Cannot use ‘in’ operator to search for ‘rowId’” |
Usually happens with reaction columns; ask the AI view to fix the error |
Runtime error on load |
AI View usually self-fixes; if not, open chat and ask it to fix |
Timeout error |
Request took too long; try again or break prompt into smaller parts |
“Your account doesn’t have access to AI views” |
That viewer doesn’t have beta access yet; they can still see the rest of the doc |
Current limitations
Since AI views are still in open beta, the team is iterating rapidly to bring even more value to the feature. Improvements and additional functionality are being introduced every week, based on your feedback. Here you can find some of the known limitations:
One table only. An AI view connects to one table. It can’t read or write other tables, including related tables.
Copying an AI view isn’t currently supported. When you copy an AI view, the new AI view will appear empty. To reuse a view, copy its code: Edit > three-dot menu > Files.
Shared chat history. Currently, everyone in the doc sees the same chat for an AI view. Changes from someone else’s prompt show up only after a refresh. Be mindful of simultaneous editing to AI views.
First load can be slow. Up to ~30 seconds. Long or complex prompts can time out - try breaking them into smaller steps.
No native comments directly on an AI view. Comments still work on rows in the base table or other views.
Undo (Cmd+Z) doesn’t work from inside an AI view. To undo a data change, go to the table. Each AI view has its own version history in the chat panel.
No PDF export from inside a view.
Maps are basic. We know maps are a highly requested use case and are working on this currently.
FAQs
How do AI views differ from other view types?
Standard display types, such as table, cards, calendar, timeline, chart, form, word cloud, and board, are ready-made layouts that you choose and then adjust with display settings. An AI view isn’t limited to a preset layout. Instead, you describe what you want and AI creates it, so you can build things the standard display types don’t offer, like interactive visualizations or custom tools.
Because AI builds the view from your prompt, you change an AI view by describing the change to AI rather than adjusting display settings.
What should I know about the security of AI views?
AI views is built to protect your data. Sharing an AI view is as secure as sharing a doc, so only people with access to your doc can see it. AI views can’t import outside libraries or code, and they can reach outside data only through Packs. The AI providers that power AI views don’t retain your data. They delete it right after processing, can’t train on your content, and process it in US data centers. Your chat history with AI views is encrypted in transit and at rest, and we don’t train on it. AI views fall under our existing security practices.
For specific compliance questions, such as HIPAA, SOC 2 certification or data training, please contact your account team. AI views is also not enabled in workspaces where AI has been turned off.
How do I leave feedback on the product?
Within the chat experience for the AI view, you will see options for thumbs up, thumbs down, and Report bug. When you click any of these options, a window will pop open where you can provide further details about your experience. Please include as much information as possible - then hit Submit to send it to our team.
Who has access to AI views?
AI views is currently in open beta. Every customer and workspace will have access to this new feature, except for those workspaces where AI has been disabled. However, your level of access does depend on your workspace tier and role.
Doc Makers in Pro, Team/Business, and Enterprise workspaces have unlimited access to AI views. They can build unlimited AI views and use existing AI views without limit. In other words, paid seats have unlimited access to AI views - at no extra charge.
Non-paid seats have access to a “free taste” of AI views. This includes 1) members of Free workspaces, and 2) Editors in paid workspaces. Each user can create one AI view and can use existing AI views without limits.
Can my data be changed via an AI view, and how do I undo a change?
Yes. AI views are interactive, so anyone with edit access to the doc can use an AI view to change the data in the underlying table, including adding, editing, or deleting rows. Cmd+Z (undo) doesn’t work from inside an AI view, so to undo a data change, go to the table itself and reverse it there. To help prevent accidental changes, you can lock the table or the page that contains the AI view. Learn more in the FAQ below.
How can I prevent someone from editing my AI view?
By default, anyone with edit access to the doc can:
Change the data in the underlying table through the AI view
Modify the AI view itself (using the chat)
To prevent accidental or unwanted changes, you can lock either the table or the page that contains the AI view.
Option 1: Lock the table - Use table locking to stop accidental edits to the table data. Users will need to unlock the table before making any changes. Note that locking the table does not prevent users from changing the look and feel of the AI view itself.
Option 2: Lock the page - Use page locking and set the page to either Read only or Interact only (with all table actions turned off). This prevents users from editing any data in the AI view. Keep in mind: anyone who can unlock the page can still bypass this restriction. To limit who can unlock the page, configure the unlocking settings.
Note: Locking is not a security feature. Learn more.
How do I make a copy of an AI view?
At this time, you cannot copy an AI view the same way you would a normal table or view. Doing so will result in a blank AI view. While we plan to add support for copying in the near future, you can follow this workaround in the meantime:
If you wish to use the same underlying data, first copy the table. If you want to start from scratch, just create a new table.
Add an AI view to the table. Don’t enter a prompt yet - you will instead copy over the code from the original AI view.
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Return to the original AI view, click Edit > click the three-dot menu > select Files. Here you will find the underlying code for the AI view.
Click on each file to open it, and copy the code from each. You do not need to copy file names - only the bracketed code.
Return to your newly added AI view, and paste each file of code all together directly into the prompt box.
Run the prompt and confirm that the new AI view matches.
How do I restore my AI view to a previous version?
You can restore an AI view to a previous version by following these steps:
Hover over the AI view, and select Edit in the upper-right corner
Click on the three-dot menu in the upper-right, then select Versions
Here you will see a list of all previous versions. Locate the correct version and click Restore.
Can I make an AI view of a Pack sync table?
Yes - you can add AI views of Pack sync tables, though you may notice some limitations while the feature is still in beta. The team is currently working on better integration with Pack sync tables, so please share any feedback you have via the AI view chat experience.