Setting Up the AI Receptionist

Overview

The AI Receptionist is a virtual front-desk assistant that answers calls around the clock. It greets callers, answers questions using your knowledge base, and transfers calls to the right destination — all without human intervention. Each AI Receptionist supports up to 10 simultaneous calls.

Requirements

• Administrator access to the PBX admin portal.
• The SIP TCP port must be enabled on the phone system. Virtual-Call has already preconfigured this — you don't need to do anything.

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Creating an AI Receptionist

1. Log in to the PBX admin portal and go to AI > AI Receptionist.
2. Click Add.
3. Complete the configuration steps described below, then click Save and Apply.

Step 1: Personalization

Configure the basic identity and voice of your AI Receptionist.

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Click Next to continue.

Step 2: Company Information

Provide company details so the AI Receptionist can correctly answer business-related questions.

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Click Next to continue.

Step 3: Greeting

Set the welcome message callers hear when the AI Receptionist answers the call.

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1. Turn on the Greeting toggle.
2. Enter a greeting message in the receptionist's primary language.
3. Optional: Select Do not interrupt greeting to prevent callers from interrupting the greeting.

Click Next to continue.

Step 4: Dial by Name

Enable this feature so callers can be transferred to the corresponding extension by saying a name.

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1. Turn on the Dial by Name toggle.
2. Select which extensions should be reachable by name:
   • All extensions — any extension can be reached by name.
   • Allowed extensions — only selected extensions can be reached.
   • Restricted extensions — selected extensions are excluded; all others can be reached.

Click Next to continue.

Step 5: Failover Destination

Set where calls are routed if the AI Receptionist cannot resolve the caller's request or no matching transfer rule applies.

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1. In the Failover Destination dropdown, select a destination type: extension, queue, ring group, conference, callflow, IVR, or group voicemail.
2. Select the specific destination.

Click Save and Apply.

Result

The AI Receptionist is created and appears in the list with the status online. This indicates it is connected and ready to answer calls.

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How Callers Reach the AI Receptionist

Once configured, callers can reach the AI Receptionist in two ways:

• Direct dial — Internal users dial the receptionist's extension number. External callers dial a DID number assigned to the receptionist.
• As a call routing destination — Add the AI Receptionist as a destination in an inbound route, an IVR, or a callflow.

Managing Existing AI Receptionists

After creation, click the receptionist in the list to open its details page. There you can:

• "Skills" tab — Enable or disable individual features (Greeting, Knowledge Base, Dial by Name, Intent-Based Transfer, Information Collection, Tools, Send SMS, MCP Server).
• "Company Information" tab — Update company description, address, and business hours.
• "Online Test" tab — Test the receptionist by call or chat before putting it into production.
• "Settings" tab — Change the name, assign a direct DID, update the failover destination, adjust call timeouts, or change the language or voice profile.

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New Skills: Send SMS and MCP Server

Release 25.1 adds two more features to the Skills tab:

• Send SMS — The AI Receptionist can automatically send an SMS to the caller during an active call, to quickly deliver important information (e.g. a link or a confirmation).
• MCP Server — Assigns one or more MCP servers to the AI Receptionist to connect business tools and external systems in bulk. This lets the receptionist interact with connected systems in a structured way, for example to look up data or trigger actions.

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Setting Up and Assigning an MCP Server

MCP servers are managed centrally and can then be assigned to individual AI Receptionists.

1. Go to AI > AI Receptionist and switch to the MCP Server tab at the top of the overview.
2. Click Add to create a new MCP server. Enter its name, description, server type, and URL.
3. Click Save.

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To assign an already-created MCP server to a specific AI Receptionist:

1. Open the desired AI Receptionist and go to the Skills tab.
2. Enable the MCP Server tile and open it.
3. Click Add and select one or more of the centrally created MCP servers from the list.
4. Click Save, then Apply.

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Deleting AI Receptionists

1. Go to AI > AI Receptionist.
2. Click the three-dot menu (⋮) next to the receptionist you want to remove and select Delete.
3. Confirm with OK.
4. Click Apply at the top of the page.