Docs
Answers
Ask out loud. A short answer appears in the top right, with sources. It searches the web only when it has to.
Try saying
- “What’s the difference between UTC and GMT?”
- A short answer in the card. It already knows this, so no web search is made.
- “What’s the weather in Lisbon tomorrow?”
- It searches the web, answers in a sentence or two and lists the sources it used.
- “What’s the capital gains rate in the UK?”
- Current facts mean a web search. Each source is a link you can open.
- “Summarise this.”
- Summarises the window in front of you: an article, a thread, a document.
- “What does this error mean?”
- Reads the error on screen and explains it in plain words, with a likely fix.
- “Translate this into Spanish.”
- Translates the text in front of you. Press Insert to paste it where your cursor was.
- “How many weeks until March 3rd?”
- Worked out on the spot.
- “Make it shorter.”
- Said within 90 seconds of an answer, it’s a follow-up. The card updates in place.
- “Hey Ambient, what does this paragraph mean?”
- In ChatGPT or Claude, “Hey Ambient” makes it answer instead of typing your prompt.
About your screen
“Summarise this”, “translate this” and “what does this error mean” use the text of the window in front of you. Turn on Read what you ask about in Ambient → Privacy first.
Only the text needed to answer is sent, with secrets removed. It reads text, never screenshots.
Web search
It searches only for current or specific facts: news, prices, rates, schedules, businesses.
Only your question is sent to the search. Turn on Keep everything on this Mac to switch web search off.
Using the answer
Insert pastes it where your cursor was. Copy puts it on the clipboard. Esc closes the card. Hold your shortcut within 90 seconds to follow up. More in the answer card.