Managing a Mate's Tools: Attaching and Detaching Capabilities

Learn how to view, attach, and detach Tool Instances for individual Native Mates on allmates.ai. This guide explains how to manage a Native Mate's specific capabilities through the "Tools" tab in their configuration settings.

Last updated 5 days ago

Customizing Your Native Mate's Skills with Tools

While all Mates possess core conversational AI abilities, you can significantly enhance the capabilities of Native Mates by attaching specific Tool Instances. Tools allow Native Mates to perform specialized actions like searching the web, generating images, interacting with external APIs, and more. This guide shows you how to manage the Tools attached to your Native Mates.

Important Note: Currently, the ability to attach and manage Tools via the "Tools" tab is primarily available for Native Mates. Other Mate types (Web-Search, Image-gen, Assistant) generally have their core capabilities built-in as part of their type definition, reflecting a transitional phase. As allmates.ai evolves, this Tool-centric approach is expected to become the standard for all Mates.

Accessing a Native Mate's Tool Configuration

  1. Navigate to Mate Management: Click on "Manage Mates" in the bottom-left menu.

  2. Select Your Mate: Go to "Organization's Mates" and click on the name of the Native Mate you wish to configure. This will open the Mate's details page.

Using the "Tools" Tab

  1. Select the Tab: Within the Mate's configuration page, click on the "Tools" tab (you might see a "Beta" label, indicating this feature is actively evolving).

  1. View Attached Tools: The main area under the "Tools" tab displays the "Manage Tools" list. This shows all Tool Instances currently attached to this Native Mate, including their name, category, and a brief description.

Attaching a Tool Instance

Equip your Native Mate with new skills by attaching pre-configured Tool Instances from your Toolbox.

  1. Click "+ Attach tool": Press this button located above the "Manage Tools" list.

  2. Select Instance(s): A modal window will appear, listing all the available Tool Instances you have previously created and configured in your Toolbox.

  3. Search/Filter (Optional): Use the search bar within the modal to quickly find specific Tool Instances.

  4. Choose and Confirm: Select the checkbox next to the Tool Instance(s) you want to attach to this Mate and confirm your selection. The chosen Tool Instance(s) will now appear in the "Manage Tools" list for this Mate.

Detaching a Tool Instance

If a Native Mate no longer needs a specific capability, you can remove the associated Tool Instance.

  1. Locate the Tool: Find the Tool Instance you wish to detach in the "Manage Tools" list.

  2. Click Detach: Click the trash can icon (🗑️) located to the right of the Tool Instance's details.

  3. Confirm (if prompted): You may be asked to confirm the detachment.

  4. Update: Clicl

  5. The Tool Instance will be removed from the Mate's list of attached tools. Note that this only detaches it from this Mate; the Tool Instance still exists in your Toolbox and can be attached to other Mates.

Saving Your Changes

Crucially, any changes you make by attaching or detaching Tools are not saved automatically.

  1. Click "Update": After making your desired changes, click the "Update" button located in the top-right corner of the Mate configuration page.


    (Image Reference Point 4)

  2. Your changes will be saved, and the Native Mate's capabilities will be updated accordingly.

Accessing Tool Documentation

Need a refresher on what Tools are or how they work?

  • Click the "Read tools guide" button (often located near the "+ Attach tool" button) for quick access to the main documentation collection about Tools & Integrations.

Conclusion

Managing the Tools attached to your Native Mates allows you to precisely tailor their capabilities to specific roles and tasks. By using the "Tools" tab, you can easily view, add, and remove functionalities, transforming your Native Mates into highly specialized collaborators. Remember that this Tool-centric approach represents the future direction for all Mates on the platform.

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