Supported Channels
Employees can reach the Leena AI virtual assistant in two ways: through Leena channels, the apps and surfaces built and hosted by Leena AI, and through external channels, the collaboration and messaging tools your organisation already uses.
For each channel below, the Experience page describes what employees see and what the channel can and can't do. The Setup page covers what an admin configures in the Admin Console.
Choosing a channelThe Web App is the reference experience. Most external channels trade some capability (buttons, tables, forms, file uploads) for reach. Compare channels shows those differences side by side, and each channel's experience page goes into the detail.
Leena channels
Configured in Admin Console → Leena Channels.
| Channel | What it is | Experience | Setup |
|---|---|---|---|
| Web App | The full assistant in a browser, reached through your assistant's own URL. | Understanding the interface | Settings · Web authentication |
| Desktop App | Windows application, available as the common Leena AI app (updates automatically) or a custom-branded build. Required for IT Automation (Device Genie). | Desktop App | Apps authentication |
| Mobile App | Leena AI app for iOS and Android, downloaded from the App Store or Google Play. | Mobile App | Apps authentication |
| Widget | Embeds the assistant in your intranet, portal, website or your own mobile app through a JavaScript snippet. | Widget | Widget config |
Settings shared across Leena channels
| Page | What it covers |
|---|---|
| Language | Override interface text (button labels, headings, prompts) in each enabled language |
| Other auth settings | Authentication settings shared by web and app sign-in |
| SAML apps | The SAML apps that web and apps authentication select from for SSO |
| Google SSO Config · Azure AD SSO Config · AD SSO Config | Identity-provider configuration guides for SSO sign-in |
External channels
Configured in Admin Console → External channels.
| Channel | What it is | Experience | Setup |
|---|---|---|---|
| Microsoft Teams | The Tab App embeds the full Web App inside Teams. Notifications arrive in the employee's Activity Feed. | Teams | Teams setup |
| Slack | Direct messages, Slack's Assistant tab, or @mentions in channels and group DMs, with answers streamed as they generate. | Slack | Slack setup |
| Google Chat | For Google Workspace organisations. Employees message the app directly or add it to a space. | Google Chat | Google Chat setup |
| Reaches frontline and deskless employees on their phones. Opt-in and WhatsApp's 24-hour messaging window apply. | WhatsApp setup | ||
| Workvivo | The assistant as a chat bot inside Workvivo. Responses are sent as plain text. | Workvivo | Workvivo setup |
| SMS | Employees text the assistant's number. No app, login or data connection needed. | SMS | Voice & SMS setup |
| Phone call | Employees dial the assistant from any phone, and can be transferred to a person mid-call. | Phone call | Voice & SMS setup · Voice (Orchestrator) |
SMS and phone call share one numberBoth are set up together on Voice & SMS setup. Configure SMS before enabling phone call in production: the assistant sends links to callers by text, and without SMS those links are never delivered.
Compare channels
Every channel connects to the same assistant, with the same knowledge, AI Colleagues and workflows behind it. What changes from one channel to the next is how answers are displayed, what employees can do without leaving the conversation, and how you reach them with notifications.
How to read these tables
- Web App also covers the Desktop App, Mobile App and Widget. They run the Web App interface, so messages, buttons, tables and forms behave the same way.
- Teams means the Tab App, which embeds the Web App inside Teams. The older native chat mode is legacy and more limited — see Teams.
- n/a means the row doesn't apply to that channel.
At a glance
| Channel | Best for | Main trade-off |
|---|---|---|
| Web App and other Leena channels | The complete experience: long answers, forms, files and voice | Employees go to the assistant, rather than finding it in a tool they already use |
| Microsoft Teams | Organisations on Teams — the full Web App, inside Teams | The Leena AI Teams app must be installed before employees can receive notifications |
| Slack | Organisations on Slack, including @mentions in channels | No side menu, theming or voice call |
| Google Chat | Google Workspace organisations | Three options per message, and forms open in a browser tab |
| Frontline and deskless employees on their own phones | Opt-in, the 24-hour window and per-message cost; files employees send aren't read | |
| Workvivo | Organisations that use Workvivo as their employee hub | Plain text only, in short messages |
| SMS | Employees with no app, data connection or corporate login | Plain text with numbered options, and every message costs money |
| Phone call | Any phone, hands-free, with transfer to a person | Nothing visual during the call; links arrive by SMS |
Conversations
| Web App | Teams | Slack | Google Chat | Workvivo | SMS | Phone call | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| How employees are identified | SSO or other configured sign-in | Microsoft account | Slack account | Google Workspace account | Phone number | Workvivo account | Phone number, optional identity check | OTP, knowledge-based check, or none |
| Parallel conversations | Multiple named chats | Multiple named chats | Threads; history in the Assistant tab | One thread per space | One thread | One thread | One thread | Each call saved to the Web App |
| Progress while the assistant works | Streaming and thinking state | Streaming and thinking state | Streaming and thinking steps | Status line updated in place | None | None | None | Spoken updates |
| Read receipts | Yes | Yes | No | No | Yes | No | No | n/a |
| Voice call | Yes | Yes | No | No | No | No | No | The channel itself |
| Branding and theme | Fully configurable | Fully configurable | App name and avatar | App name and avatar | Business profile name and picture | Bot name and avatar | None | Voice persona |
Streaming has to be enabled for the assistant. See Streaming & Thinking State.
Answers and formatting
| Web App | Teams | Slack | Google Chat | Workvivo | SMS | Phone call | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Message length | No limit, with Read more | No limit | 2,999 characters | 4,096 characters | 4,000 characters | 640 characters | 1,500 characters | Spoken |
| Formatting | Full | Full | Native Slack formatting | Cards, text formatting and lists | Bold, italic and strikethrough | Plain text | Plain text | Spoken |
| Tables | Native | Native | Native, image if complex | Image | Image | Image | Image, or a link to one | Not on the call |
| Sources | Shown with the answer | Shown with the answer | Links after the answer | Links after the answer | Links after the answer | Links after the answer | Short links at the end of the answer | In the transcript afterwards |
Answers longer than a channel's limit are split across several messages, with any options on the last one. On SMS, the carrier can further divide each message into 160-character segments that the phone reassembles. A table on SMS arrives as a picture message in the US and Canada, and as a link to the image elsewhere.
Buttons, menus and forms
| Web App | Teams | Slack | Google Chat | Workvivo | SMS | Phone call | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Buttons / menu items | 10 / 6 | 10 / 6 | 20 / 20 | 3 / 4 | 3 / 4 | 3 / 4 | Numbered list, reply with number or text | Spoken choices |
| Forms, tickets and the directory | Full page in the app | Full page in the tab | Slack modals | Browser tab | Phone's browser | Workvivo's in-app viewer | Link that needs a data connection | Not on the call; links by SMS |
| Side menu and navigation | Yes | Yes | No | No | No | No | No | No |
Options beyond a channel's limit are not shown. A flow built around the Web App's ten buttons will lose options on a three-button channel, so design for the most limited channel you deploy.
Files
| Web App | Teams | Slack | Google Chat | Workvivo | SMS | Phone call | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Employee sends a file | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Received but not read | Not read | Not read | n/a |
| Files the assistant sends | Open only when signed in | Open only when signed in | Private links that expire | Public links | Private links that expire | Private links that expire | Public links | n/a |
A public link keeps working if it is copied out of the conversation. Factor that in before routing confidential documents through Google Chat or SMS.
Notifications
| Web App | Teams | Slack | Google Chat | Workvivo | SMS | Phone call | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Where they arrive | Notification panel; push on Mobile App; OS alert on Desktop App | Teams Activity Feed | Direct message | Direct message | WhatsApp message | Workvivo chat message | Text message | Not used for notifications |
| Before you send | Nothing extra | Teams app installed | Nothing extra | Nothing extra | Opt-in; approved template outside the 24-hour window | Nothing extra | Nothing extra | n/a |
| Cost per message | None | None | None | None | Charged by your provider | None | Charged by your provider | n/a |
For how to create, target and schedule notifications, see Creating Notifications.
Related pages
- Group Chat Agent for Slack — how @mentions in Slack channels work and the extra scopes they need
- Data Visibility for Leena AI Microsoft Teams Tab App — what Microsoft can and can't see when the Web App runs inside Teams
- WhatsApp logs — delivery troubleshooting for WhatsApp
- Network Requirements for Streaming Responses — proxy and network settings needed for streamed answers
- Voice Call — the in-app voice call, as distinct from the phone call channel
- Voice Architecture — how in-app voice and phone call work behind the scenes
Updated 11 days ago