Add materials your assistant can use
An assistant teaches best when it works from your materials, not the open internet. The Material tab is where you give it the files and material collections it should lean on during the activity: a worksheet, a reading, a set of slides, whatever your lesson is built around. The assistant then grounds its answers in what you provided.
You decide what goes in. The assistant uses the materials you select here, the same way for every student.
Before you start
You need an assistant to work on. If you have not built one yet, create your first assistant first, then come back to the Material tab. It helps to have your files ready, either already uploaded to your workspace or saved somewhere you can find them on your computer.
Build your assistant's material
The Material tab does two things: it lets you pull in materials you already have, and it lets you upload new ones. You can mix both. Work through it in order.
1. Open the Material tab
In the assistant editor, open the Material tab. You will see a search box for finding existing materials and an Upload files button for adding new ones. Anything you add shows up in a list below.
2. Select materials you already have
Use the search box to browse files and material collections already in your workspace. Start typing and matching items appear under Available material, each marked as a file or a collection. Click one to add it to this assistant. A collection brings in all the files inside it at once, which is handy when you have grouped a topic together.
3. Upload new files
To add something that is not in your workspace yet, click Upload files and choose the files, or drag them straight onto the tab. They upload and are added to this assistant automatically. You can select several at once.
4. Watch each item come ready
Each item you add appears in the list with its current state: uploading, then analyzing while the assistant reads it, then ready. Wait until an item is ready before you rely on it in a lesson. To take something back out, remove it from the list.
5. Continue
When the materials are in place, use Continue to move on to the next tab, or Back to return to Behavior. Your students see the updated materials the next time they start a session.
Data & safety
Materials you add are used by this assistant to answer your students, so add only what you are comfortable using in class. Uploaded files stay inside your workspace. The assistant grounds its answers in your materials, but generated replies can still be imperfect, so treat it as a teaching aid you supervise. You can add or remove materials at any time.
Tips
- Add a focused set of materials rather than everything you have. A tight, relevant selection keeps the assistant on topic far better than a large, mixed pile.
- Group related files into a collection in your workspace first, then add the collection in one click. You can reuse the same collection across several assistants.
- Give files clear names before you upload them. The assistant and you both find the right material faster when the names say what they are.
Troubleshooting
My file is stuck analyzing. Larger files take longer to read. Give it a moment, and if it does not turn ready, remove it and upload it again. A clean re-upload clears most processing hiccups.
The assistant ignores a material I added. First check the file or collection is actually added to this assistant in the Material tab. Then make sure it shows as ready, not still analyzing, and is relevant to the question you asked. The assistant leans on the materials that fit the conversation.
I cannot find a file in the search box. The search only shows materials already in your workspace. If it is on your computer, use Upload files to add it instead.