---
sourceDocument: Zurich ServiceNow AI Platform Administration
sourceDocumentLink: https://www.servicenow.com/docs/r/zurich/platform-administration

 Release :

    - zurich

ft:locale :

    - en-US

ft:publication_title :

    - Zurich ServiceNow AI Platform Administration

ft:clusterId :

    - platadm

bundleId :

    - platadm

workflow :

    - Platform


---

# Configure

# Configuring AI Search {#ariaid-title1}

* Release version: Zurich
* 
* Updated February 13, 2026
* 
* ![](https://www.servicenow.com/docs/portal-asset/ico-clock) 2 minutes to read

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This content was generated using new OpenAI-powered functionality. Results are provided on an as is basis and are not guaranteed to be accurate or complete.  

## Summary of Configuring AI Search

This guide outlines how to plan and configure AI Search within the ServiceNow AI Platform to enable powerful, customizable search experiences across various applications.
AI Search allows indexing and searching of ServiceNow table data and external documents, with advanced features like synonym handling, typo tolerance, and fuzzy numeric search to improve result relevance and usability.
Show full answer Show less  

## Key Configuration Elements

* **Role Assignments:** Assign specific roles such as `aisadmin` for managing indexing and search settings, `aishighsecurityadmin` for high-security configurations, and `searchapplicationadmin` for managing search application settings.
* **Indexed Sources:** Define which ServiceNow AI Platform tables or external document sets are included in the search index. Pre-configured indexed sources include Catalog Item, Knowledge, and User tables.
* **Search Sources:** Apply filters to indexed sources to create searchable subsets accessible to users in search experiences.
* **Search Profiles:** Configure search behavior such as synonyms, stop words, typo handling, Genius Results, and rules for improving results. Publish profiles for use in applications.
* **Search Application Configurations:** Create configurations linking search profiles with specific ServiceNow AI Platform applications (e.g., Service Portal, Virtual Agent) and customize search UX settings.
* **Guided Setup:** Use the AI Search guided setup interface to streamline configuration steps and role assignments.
* **Platform Multimodal Service Plugin:** Activate this plugin to enable automatic generation of searchable captions for non-text content like images and charts in attachments.
* **Custom Global Search Matchers:** Optionally configure exact-match search behavior for specific fields to tailor global search results, supporting formats like prefixed numbers and delimited numeric strings.
* **Fuzzy Numeric Search:** Enable this feature to allow users to find records by number fields without requiring exact prefixes or leading zeroes.
* **EVAM Display Settings:** Customize the visual presentation of search result cards, including border display options for portal and global searches.
* **External Content Indexing:** With the External Content for AI Search plugin subscription, index and search content from external document repositories and remote tables.

## Practical Considerations for ServiceNow Customers

* Ensure proper role assignments for administrators and users to manage AI Search effectively and securely.
* Leverage pre-configured indexed and search sources as starting points, customizing as needed for your content.
* Use search profiles to tailor search experiences to different user needs and application contexts.
* Activate plugins like the Platform Multimodal Service for richer searchable content beyond text.
* Utilize guided setup to simplify and standardize AI Search deployment.
* Consider domain separation restrictions and understand that AI Search respects domain limitations in indexed records even though domain separation is unsupported on AI Search tables.
* Expand search capabilities by indexing external content to unify search across internal and external data sources.

By following these configuration steps, ServiceNow customers can implement AI Search to deliver accurate, context-aware, and customizable search experiences that enhance user productivity and satisfaction across multiple ServiceNow applications.  
Plan and configure your AI Search implementation.

## AI Search configuration overview {#configuring-ais__section_dq1_sgd_2nb}

{#configuring-ais__table_nhp_vgd_2nb__entry__2}

| Configuration stage | Description |
|-|-|
| [Assign roles to AI Search administrators and users](https://www.servicenow.com/docs/IeCKXrYbAlx9Dns80zA5cQ "Grant users the ais_admin, ais_external_content, ais_high_security_admin, and search_application_admin roles so they can configure and manage settings and content for AI Search and search applications.") | Assign the ais_admin role to users who need to create, read, update, and delete content indexing and search settings for AI Search. Assign the ais_high_security_admin elevated privilege role to users who need to access High Security settings for AI Search. Assign the search_application_admin to users who need to create, read, update, and delete search application configurations. |
| [Define indexed sources](https://www.servicenow.com/docs/YBjHfOUBiGWYXcO4ejBRKA "Indexed sources designate ServiceNow AI Platform tables and external document sets with alphanumeric text and string field content that you want to make searchable. AI Search ingests text and string fields from table records or external documents and stores their searchable alphanumeric content in its search index.") | Create and configure an indexed source for each ServiceNow AI Platform® table that has content you want to make searchable. Index source tables to add their searchable content to the AI Search index. The base system includes pre-configured indexed sources for the Catalog Item, Knowledge, and User tables. |
| [Define search sources](https://www.servicenow.com/docs/u3Ox_VuYesIbdgpDCQSOfA "Define search sources to make your searchable content available in search experiences. Choose an indexed source and configure optional filter conditions to limit the content that users can search.") | Apply filter conditions to indexed sources to define search sources that users can access in your search experiences. The base system includes pre-configured search sources that reference the default indexed sources. |
| [Define search profiles](https://www.servicenow.com/docs/CMHvOyHFqqaV4ru0_AHwEQ "Search profiles contain settings for a search experience, including synonyms, stop words, typo handling, Genius Results, and result improvement rules. Define a search profile for each unique search experience that you want to offer in a ServiceNow AI Platform application. Publish search profiles to make them available in your search applications.") | Create and publish a search profile for each distinct search experience that you want to offer in search applications. Specify the data that users can search by linking search sources to the search profile. Control search behavior by configuring synonyms, stop words, typo handling settings, Genius Results, and result improvement rules. The base system includes pre-configured search profiles for use with Service Portal, Now Mobile, and the AI Search Assist Service Portal widget. |
| [Define search application configurations](https://www.servicenow.com/docs/rkJqhhy_Ylyw3rSbkIEJuA "A search application configuration specifies the search engine and settings to use for search in a ServiceNow AI Platform application. When you choose AI Search as an application's search engine, you can select a search profile for the application and configure its search result display and refinement settings.") | Create a configuration for each ServiceNow AI Platform application that supports AI Search. Select a search profile for the application to use. Configure application-specific search settings. The base system includes pre-configured search application configurations for Service Portal, Virtual Agent, and the AI Search Assist Service Portal widget. |
| [Enable and configure AI Search in ServiceNow AI Platform applications](https://www.servicenow.com/docs/1Hu5RGL3RbxnOkVxgvccNg "Configure and use the AI Search engine in the Customer Service Management, Now Mobile, Service Portal, and Virtual Agent applications.") | Specify AI Search as the search engine in supported ServiceNow AI Platform applications. Select a search application configuration for each application to use and configure available search UX settings. |
| [Create a custom search matcher for global search](https://www.servicenow.com/docs/1WcPLbjc16R1QoU2qt42fg "Customize the global search experience to return exact match search results from a specified table and column (field). You can configure custom search matchers for search terms with prefixes followed by numbers, such as INT470271, or for numeric search terms with delimiter characters, such as 525-326-3827 or 2016/01/08.") | Optionally configure exact-match global searches that only match results from a specified column (field) on a particular ServiceNow AI Platform table. |
[ ]

{#configuring-ais__table_nhp_vgd_2nb}

## Using guided setup to implement AI Search {#configuring-ais__section_i4s_lgz_12b}

Guided setup provides a sequence of tasks that help you configure AI Search on your ServiceNow instance. To open AI Search guided setup, navigate to AllAI SearchGuided Setup.

For more information about using the guided setup interface, see [Using guided setup](https://www.servicenow.com/docs/access?context=guided-setup&version=zurich&pubname=zurich-platform-user-interface&ft:locale=en-US).
* **[Assign roles to AI Search administrators and users](https://www.servicenow.com/docs/IeCKXrYbAlx9Dns80zA5cQ)**   
  Grant users the ais_admin, ais_external_content, ais_high_security_admin, and search_application_admin roles so they can configure and manage settings and content for AI Search and search applications.
* **[Activate the Platform Multimodal Service plugin](https://www.servicenow.com/docs/_qrPdoxNnzsBgbPm6LiCiw)**   
  Enable automatic generation of searchable captions for images, tables, charts, and complex layouts found in indexed attachments.
* **[Indexed sources in AI Search](https://www.servicenow.com/docs/YBjHfOUBiGWYXcO4ejBRKA)**   
  Indexed sources designate ServiceNow AI Platform® tables and external document sets with alphanumeric text and string field content that you want to make searchable. AI Search ingests text and string fields from table records or external documents and stores their searchable alphanumeric content in its search index.
* **[Search sources in AI Search](https://www.servicenow.com/docs/u3Ox_VuYesIbdgpDCQSOfA)**   
  Define search sources to make your searchable content available in search experiences. Choose an indexed source and configure optional filter conditions to limit the content that users can search.
* **[Search profiles in AI Search](https://www.servicenow.com/docs/CMHvOyHFqqaV4ru0_AHwEQ)**   
  Search profiles contain settings for a search experience, including synonyms, stop words, typo handling, Genius Results, and result improvement rules. Define a search profile for each unique search experience that you want to offer in a ServiceNow AI Platform® application. Publish search profiles to make them available in your search applications.
* **[Search application configurations](https://www.servicenow.com/docs/rkJqhhy_Ylyw3rSbkIEJuA)**   
  A search application configuration specifies the search engine and settings to use for search in a ServiceNow AI Platform® application. When you choose AI Search as an application's search engine, you can select a search profile for the application and configure its search result display and refinement settings.
* **[Activate fuzzy numeric search in AI Search](https://www.servicenow.com/docs/S5tyikbLvqqnJYJqOxrS1A)**   
  Activate fuzzy numeric search to let users find indexed records by their Number field values without needing to enter alphabetic prefixes or leading zeroes.
* **[Configure EVAM display settings for search results in AI Search applications](https://www.servicenow.com/docs/PpbDIQ~1zxJgbzqLwF7~qA)**   
  Customize display settings for Search Result EVAM (Entity View Action Mapping) cards in portal and non-portal AI Search applications.
* **[Show borders between search result cards in portal search](https://www.servicenow.com/docs/baoh6wluViNjZ4Sg_VVXEQ)**   
  Display borders between search result cards on the search results page for portal search applications.
* **[Show borders between search result cards in global search](https://www.servicenow.com/docs/bzx__cpOHLBHNXzVMxhkDw)**   
  Display borders between search result cards on the global search results page.
* **[Enabling and configuring AI Search in ServiceNow AI Platform applications](https://www.servicenow.com/docs/1Hu5RGL3RbxnOkVxgvccNg)**   
  Configure and use the AI Search engine in the Customer Service Management, Now Mobile, Service Portal, and Virtual Agent applications.
* **[Create a custom search matcher for global search](https://www.servicenow.com/docs/1WcPLbjc16R1QoU2qt42fg)**   
  Customize the global search experience to return exact match search results from a specified table and column (field). You can configure custom search matchers for search terms with prefixes followed by numbers, such as INT470271, or for numeric search terms with delimiter characters, such as 525-326-3827 or 2016/01/08.
* **[Domain separation and AI Search](https://www.servicenow.com/docs/wIT4BZhQAiC2CriGZHM4zg)**   
  Domain separation is unsupported for the AI Search application tables, but user search queries respect domain restrictions from indexed ServiceNow AI Platform® table records. Domain separation enables you to separate data, processes, and administrative tasks into logical groupings called domains. You can control several aspects of this separation, including which users can see and access data.
* **[Indexing and searching external content in AI Search](https://www.servicenow.com/docs/YMRjaDHkGyohFBjB3uSkYQ)**   
  With a subscription for the External Content for AI Search plugin, you can enable AI Search users to search content and metadata from documents in external repositories and remote tables.

*[\>]: and then