Platform Academy: Getting started with Now Assist for Search & Chat on mobile

David Ha · 2 hours ago

Unlock Smarter Mobile Search & Chat with Now Assist on ServiceNow

Mobile users expect answers instantly—without digging through menus, long forms, or knowledge bases. That’s where Now Assist for mobile search and chat comes in.

In this Platform Academy session, Stacy Zhou walks through how ServiceNow’s generative AI capabilities transform the mobile experience—turning search bars into powerful, conversational assistants that help users get work done faster.

Why Now Assist on Mobile?

ServiceNow mobile has evolved rapidly over the last few releases, with a clear goal:
make mobile interactions feel as natural and helpful as talking to a colleague.

With Now Assist on mobile, organizations can:

Answer user questions conversationally
Reduce friction in service requests
Deflect tickets with AI-generated responses
Deliver faster time-to-value with minimal configuration

All of this is powered by ServiceNow’s generative AI—designed to work securely with your platform data and workflows.

Meet Now Assist Chat (Virtual Agent on Mobile)

Now Assist Chat upgrades the traditional mobile virtual agent into a consumer-grade chat experience.

What users can do:

Ask questions in natural language
Get AI-generated answers with inline citations
Take action directly from chat (submit requests, notify teammates)
Continue conversations across sessions with chat history
Look up people and view profiles without leaving the chat

One standout feature is conversational catalog requests.
Instead of filling out long mobile forms, users can request things like laptops or PTO by simply answering a few AI-guided questions—right inside the chat.

Enabling Now Assist Chat Is Surprisingly Simple

Once Virtual Agent is already enabled on mobile, turning on Now Assist Chat is essentially a switch:

Open the Assistant record in the platform
Go to Display Experience → Mobile
Select your mobile chat function
Save and refresh your mobile app

That’s it. The chat icon becomes the Now Assist experience instantly—no duplicate configuration across portals or channels.

Now Assist Search: Two Powerful Modes

Search on mobile gets a major upgrade with Now Assist, and admins can choose how conversational they want the experience to be.

Option 1: AI Answers on the Search Results Page

Users type a query
AI-generated answers appear above traditional search results
Inline actions let users jump into chat or submit requests

This keeps search familiar, but smarter.

Option 2: Full-Page Conversational Search

The search bar opens directly into Now Assist Chat
User queries become instant chat prompts
Ideal for organizations that want a fully conversational search experience

Both options use the same Assistant configuration—the difference is just a checkbox.

Additional Features: Web Search & Document Q&A

Beyond the core chat experience, admins can enable powerful add-ons with simple toggles:

🌐 Web Search

Allows Now Assist to answer questions using external web sources—not just internal ServiceNow data.
Perfect for questions like weather, policies, or general knowledge.

📄 Document & Image Q&A

Users can upload documents or images directly in chat.
Now Assist analyzes the content, summarizes it, and suggests follow-up questions—ideal for:

Document review
Image analysis
On-the-go clarification

Both features are enabled directly from the Assistant record—no extra development required.

Pro Tips & Best Practices

Configure your Assistant once, deploy everywhere (mobile, portal, employee center)
Start with AI search + chat enabled before adding advanced features
Use conversational requests to reduce form fatigue on mobile
Test performance and clarity—mobile users value speed and simplicity

Final Thoughts

Now Assist on mobile isn’t just a UI enhancement—it fundamentally changes how users interact with ServiceNow on the go.

Whether you’re enabling smarter search, conversational requests, or AI-powered chat, the setup is fast, scalable, and designed to meet users where they already are.

If your goal is to reduce friction, deflect tickets, and deliver a modern mobile experience, this is one Platform Academy session you’ll want to revisit.

👉 Catch the full session recording and start building smarter mobile experiences today.