NLQ Genius Results

  • Release version: Australia
  • Updated March 12, 2026
  • 3 minutes to read
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    Summarized using AI
    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 NLQ Genius Results

    NLQ Genius Results enhance your ServiceNow experience by utilizing Natural Language Query (NLQ) processing to retrieve relevant data from tables based on your search queries. Each answer card provides a preview of records from the matching tables, allowing for easy navigation to deeper details within the CMDB workspace or list views without needing to define tables as indexed sources.

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    Key Features

    • Answer Card Formats: Displays results based on the number of matched tables. A single match shows up to five records, while multiple matches present as pills or dropdown lists for easy selection and previewing.
    • Refinement Options: When multiple terms match CMDB tables, you can refine results using dropdown lists for each search term, enhancing the ability to find specific information.
    • Navigation Actions: Selecting "View full table" leads to different views based on how the table was identified, either in list view or the CMDB workspace.
    • Feedback Mechanism: Users can provide feedback on the accuracy of AI-supported answers through thumbs up or down icons, aiding continuous improvement.

    Key Outcomes

    Implementing NLQ Genius Results allows for quicker access to relevant data, improving efficiency when searching for information. However, be aware of performance considerations such as increased response time on first searches and limitations, including support only for English searches and lack of visual query options like charts.

    For enhanced functionality, the system can be configured to display search result previews in Service Portal applications and customize navigation actions for answer cards, ensuring that they align with your organization's search needs.

    NLQ (Natural Language Query) Genius Results use NLQ processing to surface relevant results from tables that match your search query. Each NLQ Genius Result answer card displays a preview of records from matching tables. You can navigate to a matching table's list view or the CMDB workspace directly from the Genius Result answer card.

    NLQ Genius Results don't use indexed sources when finding tables that match your query. You don't need to define a table as an indexed source to make it eligible to appear in NLQ Genius Result answers.

    When computing NLQ Genius Result answers, AI Search identifies tables that match your search using the following NLQ query types:
    • Natural language queries similar to the ones made using Analytics Overview. To learn more about Analytics Overview table query capabilities, see Platform Analytics overview.
    • Natural language queries similar to the ones made using the Configuration Management Database (CMDB). These CMDB queries only match tables that aren't defined as indexed sources. For more information about CMDB table query capabilities, see Configuration Management.

    AI Search combines the results from these query types when creating NLQ Genius Result answer cards. As a result, a single NLQ Genius Result answer card may contain tables returned by Analytics Overview queries, CMDB queries, or both.

    For more information about NLQ processing, see Natural Language Query.

    Answer card format

    The NLQ Genius Result answer card shows different results depending on how many tables your search matched.
    Search matches a single table

    When your search only matches one table, the answer card's preview list displays up to five records from that table. To see more records from the table, select View full table.

    NLQ Genius Result answer card showing preview records from a single table that matched your query, with answer type, View full table link, About link, and thumbs-up and thumbs-down feedback links.

    Search matches multiple tables

    When your search matches multiple tables, the answer card displays the matching tables as pills or as entries in a drop-down list. You can select any of the matching tables to preview.

    The preview list displays up to five records from the selected table. To see more records from the table, select View full table.

    NLQ Genius Result answer card showing pills for multiple tables that matched your search, along with preview records from selected pill.

    Multiple search terms match CMDB tables

    When multiple terms in your search match CMDB tables, the answer card displays Refine and preview controls. A drop-down list appears for each search term that matches one or more CMDB tables. Use the drop-down lists to refine your results by selecting a CMDB table for each matching search term.

    The preview list displays records from a CMDB workspace smart search for the selected tables, including their connecting relationships. To see more records from the chosen tables, select View full table.

    NLQ Genius Result answer card showing drop-down lists for multiple search terms that matched CMDB tables, along with joined preview records from selected tables.

    Viewing full tables

    When you select View full table in an NLQ Genius Result answer card, the action performed depends on how the matching table was found. The default actions are as follows.
    • If the table was found by an Analytics Overview table query, the system displays it in list view.
    • If the table was found by a CMDB table query, the system displays it in the CMDB Workspace.
    Search administrators can customize these actions. For more information, see the Configure navigation actions for NLQ Genius Result answer cards section.

    Review feedback

    Some NLQ Genius Result answers show NLQ supported by AI as their answer type, indicating that they used artificial intelligence to help find tables that matched your search query. Because these answers are automatically generated, you should review them for accuracy.

    To provide review feedback on an NLQ Genius Result answer, select one of the thumb icons shown on the answer card. If the answer's information is accurate, select the thumbs up icon . If the answer's information isn't accurate, select the thumbs down icon .

    Your feedback helps ServiceNow improve future versions of this Genius Result configuration.

    Limitations

    Like the other base system Genius Result configurations, NLQ Genius Results only support searches in English.

    NLQ Genius Results rely on Natural Language Query processing, which can increase the time required to return results on the first search for a given set of terms. Consider this performance impact before enabling NLQ Genius Results in any of your AI Search applications.

    NLQ Genius Results don't support the following table query options:
    • Grouping of table query results
    • Rendering of table query results as pie charts or bar charts
    • Trend and single score visualizations
    • Keywords that return results in non-list formats, such as total, count, or average