An AI chatbot for customer support is an AI agent on your website that reads each customer question, finds the answer in your own help content and replies in plain language, at any hour. When a question needs a person, it hands the chat to your team inbox. It answers the routine questions so your people can handle the rest.
This explainer, updated 3 November 2026, covers how it works, how it differs from a scripted bot and live chat, what it costs on Dante AI and a worked conversation from first question to human handover.
What is an AI chatbot for customer support?
It is the chat window on your site, backed by an AI agent trained on your business. Customers type questions the way they think of them. The agent answers from what you taught it, not from a fixed script. For the build steps, see our guide to the customer service chatbot.
How does an AI support chatbot work?
- You add knowledge. Website URLs, PDFs, Word files, slides, text and Q&A pairs. On paid Dante AI plans the knowledge re-syncs on a schedule, from weekly on Starter to daily on Pro.
- A customer asks a question. The agent searches your knowledge for the relevant passages.
- A model writes the answer. It replies in plain language from those passages. Dante AI runs the latest models from OpenAI, Anthropic and Google on paid plans.
- A person steps in when needed. With Human Handover on, the chat moves to your team inbox for a live reply.
How is it different from a scripted bot or live chat?
| Scripted bot | Live chat only | AI support chatbot | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Who answers | Fixed buttons and decision trees | A person on your team | An AI agent, with a person on handover |
| Free-text questions | Only the ones you planned for | Yes, when someone is online | Yes, from your own content |
| Hours | Any time | Staffed hours | Any time, people for the hard cases |
| Upkeep | Edit every flow by hand | Hiring and shifts | Keep your help content current |
Read more about choosing one with a strong handover in our guide to the best AI chatbot with human handover.
What does a real support conversation look like?
- Customer: "Do you deliver on Sundays?" The agent finds the delivery policy you uploaded and answers in one line.
- Customer: "My order arrived damaged, can I talk to someone?" The agent recognises a request for a person.
- Handover: the chat lands in your inbox marked Awaiting, and the customer sees a short holding message while they wait. The AI agent does not send a second answer.
- Your team replies live with the full conversation in front of them.
On the default model each customer message uses 1 credit, so this conversation costs about 2 credits of AI time.
How much does it cost?
Prices are per month, checked against our plans page on 3 November 2026. Yearly billing gives two months free.
| Plan | Price / month | AI agents | Team seats | Credits / month | Human handover | Knowledge auto-update |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Free | $0 | 1 | 1 | 100 | No | No |
| Starter | $40 | 1 | 2 | 2,000 | No | Weekly |
| Advanced | $120 | 3 | 3 | 8,000 | Yes | Every 3 days |
| Pro | $400 | 10 | 5 | 30,000 | Yes | Daily |
Full details are on the pricing page. Comparing tools? See Dante AI vs Chatbase, or our guide to an AI chatbot builder for growing teams if several people share support.
Want to see it answer your own customers' questions? Get started free at dante-ai.com.
Frequently asked questions
What is an AI chatbot for customer support?
It is an AI agent on your website that answers customer questions in plain language from your own content, such as your help pages, policies and files, and passes the chat to a person when the customer needs one.
How is an AI support chatbot different from a scripted bot?
A scripted bot follows fixed buttons and decision trees. An AI support chatbot reads the question as written and answers from your knowledge, so it handles wordings you never planned for.
Does an AI chatbot replace the support team?
No. It answers the repeat questions so your people spend their time on the chats that need judgement. That is a hybrid team: AI for the routine answers, people for the rest, joined by human handover.
What happens when a customer asks for a human?
On Dante AI, with Human Handover on, the customer clicks Talk to a human or asks in their own words. The chat appears in your team inbox marked Awaiting, and the AI agent does not also reply.
How much does an AI chatbot for customer support cost?
Dante AI starts free with 1 agent and 100 credits a month. Starter is $40 a month, and Advanced, which includes Human Handover, is $120 a month.
Sources
- Dante AI Help Center, Plans and pricing (prices, agents, seats, credits, auto-update, models, add-ons), read 3 November 2026.
- Dante AI Help Center, Knowledge sources and training, read 3 November 2026.
- Dante AI Help Center, Inbox: human handover live chat, read 3 November 2026.
- Dante AI Help Center, Understanding credits, read 3 November 2026.