# Assistant > Ask the built-in Assistant about FlashBoards and your board, attach images, approve paid generations and export a session. Source: https://flashboards.yaroflasher.com/docs/generation/assistant Last verified: 2026-10-23 (checked against FlashBoards app build e22c9a305) The Assistant lives in the right-side panel of the board. Ask it how to do something in FlashBoards, or what's on your board, without leaving your work. > **Note: Beta and subscription.** The Assistant is in beta and needs an active subscription. If the side panel only shows **Notifications**, your account does not currently have Assistant access. If the Assistant tab opens but access is refused, the panel explains why. A missing-subscription message offers **View plans**; after you return, **Check access** tries again. Other account or beta access refusals may have no action button. It works in the web app and the desktop app. ![The Assistant side panel in Chat mode answering a question about the look of the board](https://media.yaroflasher.com/docs/media/assistant-panel.w1600.8d0f686b.webp) ## Open the Assistant ### Step 1: Open the side panel Click the side-panel button at the top right of the board. It opens on **Notifications**. ### Step 2: Switch to Assistant Select **Assistant** at the top of the panel. The first time, a **Before using AI Assistants** screen explains the terms: conversations may be reviewed, used to improve AI responses (including model training where permitted), processed by third-party AI providers, and stored for up to 90 days after your last activity. Click **Start Assistant** to accept. ### Step 3: Ask Type in the message box at the bottom of the panel (in Chat it reads **Ask one question about this board or workflow**) and press `Enter` or **Send**, or click a **Try** suggestion. ![The Assistant side panel showing Before using AI Assistants and the Start Assistant button](https://media.yaroflasher.com/docs/media/assistant-consent.w1600.854cc2ee.webp) *The first time you open the Assistant, read the terms and click Start Assistant* ## Chat and Agent Click the mode button in the composer (**Assistant settings**). It reads **Chat** or **Agent**, and also shows the model if you picked one. The Assistant starts in **Chat**. * **Chat** answers questions and explains your board. It does not change, export, delete or share board content, or start generations. Its replies are charged from your balance. * **Agent** can also act on the board: prepare or start a generation, or run [media tools](https://flashboards.yaroflasher.com/docs/media/media-tools.md) such as trim, join, convert or extract frames. Results are added as new items and originals are kept. It's greyed out if your account doesn't have it. * **Model** picks which model writes the replies. Some accounts also see an **Engine** setting; leave it on **Model**. ## Attach images and add results to the board Click **Upload image** to pick a file, or **Attach selected board images** to send what you've selected. When a reply includes an image, click **Add** on its card to place it on the board. ## Chats, history and export * **History** lists **Recent chats**. Pick one to continue it, or click **New**. * **Start new conversation** clears the chat. * **Export agent session log** downloads the conversation as a file. If **Collect Assistant sessions** is on, the export is also uploaded to FlashBoards. ## Approvals and spending Each successful Assistant reply is charged from your balance, and one Agent task can take several replies. Paid generations the Assistant proposes appear as a **Run generation** card with a cost estimate, which includes any active discount, and **Approve to charge your balance and run this generation.** Click **Approve** or **Cancel**. If the price changes after you approve, the Assistant asks you to approve the new price. ### Auto-approve paid runs In Agent mode, **Assistant settings** has an **Auto-approve paid runs** switch. Turn it on to let the Assistant start paid generations without the card, up to a spending limit. * **Limit per session**: pick $5, $10 (the default), $25, $50 or **Off**. FlashBoards remembers the limit you pick. With **Off** there's no session limit, but each run is still capped. * While it's on, an amber dot shows on the settings button, and a banner at the top of the chat reads **Auto-approve on · $X of $Y used (estimated)**, with **Turn off**. * The amount used counts only the paid generations it approved, as estimated from each run's price, not your final charge. The Assistant's own replies are charged separately and aren't counted against this limit. Check [Generation History](https://flashboards.yaroflasher.com/docs/generation/history-and-errors.md) for what you were charged. * When the next run would go over the limit, it waits for your approval on the card again. The banner says why and offers **Continue +$X**, which raises the limit for this session. If a run's price can't be estimated, it also waits for your approval. * Auto-approve is always off when you start a new chat, reopen a chat from **History** or reload the page. Turn it on again each time you want it. ![Assistant settings in Agent mode with Auto-approve paid runs on and Limit per session set to $10, and the banner Auto-approve on · $0 of $10 used (estimated) with Turn off](https://media.yaroflasher.com/docs/media/assistant-auto-approve.w760.0bc0d149.webp) Leave it off if you want to approve every generation. > **Warning: Stopping the Assistant doesn't cancel a run.** A generation that has already started keeps running when you stop the Assistant, and it's charged if it finishes. If a reply fails, it shows a **Retry** button (**Retry last message**). Retry sends your last message again, with its images, and asks for a new reply. That new reply is charged like any other. ## Chatbot Usage **Settings → Chatbot Usage** lists each Assistant reply with its engine (for example **Model engine**), date, response time, input and output tokens, and cost. It can show the name of a recognized Chat model; otherwise it shows a model-pool label. The **Collect Assistant sessions** toggle at the top controls whether your sessions are collected under the Terms and Privacy policy. See [Generation billing](https://flashboards.yaroflasher.com/docs/generation/billing.md). ## Related - [Generate images and video](https://flashboards.yaroflasher.com/docs/generation/generate.md) - [Connect an AI agent (MCP)](https://flashboards.yaroflasher.com/docs/integrations/mcp.md) - [Generation billing](https://flashboards.yaroflasher.com/docs/generation/billing.md)