Adding Knowledge Sources

thinnestAI supports a variety of content sources. This guide walks through each type with setup instructions and tips.

File Uploads

Upload documents directly from your computer. This is the most common way to add knowledge.

Supported File Types

• PDF — Reports, manuals, whitepapers, ebooks
• DOCX — Word documents
• TXT — Plain text files
• Markdown — .md files with formatting preserved

How to Upload Files

1. Open your knowledge base.
2. Click Add Source > File Upload.
3. Drag and drop files or click Browse to select them.
4. You can upload multiple files at once (batch upload).
5. Click Upload and wait for processing.

Batch Upload

Upload multiple files in a single operation:

1. Select all files you want to upload (Ctrl/Cmd + click to select multiple).
2. Drop them into the upload area.
3. All files are processed in parallel.
4. Each file becomes a separate source that you can manage independently.

Tips for File Uploads

• Use descriptive filenames — The filename is used as metadata and helps with search relevance.
• Clean formatting — Well-structured PDFs with headings and paragraphs produce better chunks than scanned images.
• OCR limitation — Scanned PDFs without selectable text may not extract properly. Use OCR-processed versions when possible.
• Remove headers/footers — Repeated headers and footers in PDFs can add noise to your knowledge base.

URL Sources

Import content from any public web page. thinnestAI scrapes the page and extracts the main content.

Adding a URL

1. Click Add Source > URL.
2. Paste the web page URL:

https://docs.yourcompany.com/getting-started

3. Click Add. thinnestAI fetches and processes the page content.

Crawling Multiple Pages

You can add multiple URLs to cover an entire documentation site:

# Add each important page as a separate URL source
https://docs.yourcompany.com/getting-started
https://docs.yourcompany.com/features
https://docs.yourcompany.com/pricing
https://docs.yourcompany.com/faq

URL Tips

• Public pages only — The URL must be publicly accessible (no login required).
• Main content extracted — Navigation, sidebars, and footers are automatically stripped. Only the main content is indexed.
• Dynamic content — JavaScript-rendered content (SPAs) may not be fully captured. For complex pages, consider copying the content as text instead.
• Refresh manually — URL sources are fetched once. If the page content changes, delete the source and re-add it to get the updated version.

YouTube Videos

Extract transcripts from YouTube videos and add them to your knowledge base. Great for training videos, webinars, and tutorials.

Adding a YouTube Video

1. Click Add Source > YouTube.
2. Paste the YouTube video URL:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dQw4w9WgXcQ

3. Click Add. thinnestAI extracts the video transcript automatically.

How It Works

• The transcript (auto-generated or manually added captions) is extracted.
• Timestamps are preserved as metadata.
• The full transcript is chunked and indexed like any other text.

YouTube Tips

• Captions required — The video must have captions (auto-generated or manual). Videos without captions cannot be transcribed.
• Manual captions preferred — If available, manual captions are more accurate than auto-generated ones.
• Long videos — Webinars and long-form content work well. The transcript is chunked into manageable segments.

Text Input

Paste text directly into the knowledge base. Useful for FAQs, quick reference content, or information that doesn't exist in a document.

Adding Text

1. Click Add Source > Text.
2. Give the source a title (e.g., "Refund Policy" or "Product FAQ").
3. Paste or type your content in the text area.
4. Click Add.

When to Use Text Input

• FAQs — Paste frequently asked questions and answers.
• Quick updates — Add a new policy or announcement without creating a document.
• Structured data — Paste formatted tables or lists.
• Corrections — Add clarifications or overrides for content in other sources.

Example: Adding an FAQ

Title: Common Questions

Content:

Q: What are your business hours?
A: We're open Monday through Friday, 9 AM to 6 PM Eastern Time.

Q: Do you offer free trials?
A: Yes! All plans come with a 14-day free trial. No credit card required.

Q: How do I cancel my subscription?
A: Go to Settings > Billing > Cancel Subscription. You can cancel anytime.

Q: Do you offer refunds?
A: We offer full refunds within 30 days of purchase. Contact support@acme.com.

GitHub Repositories

Import documentation and code from GitHub repositories. Ideal for technical products where docs live alongside code.

Adding a GitHub Repository

1. Click Add Source > GitHub.
2. Enter the repository URL:

https://github.com/your-org/your-repo

3. Configure import options:

4. Authenticate with GitHub if the repository is private.
5. Click Add.

GitHub Tips

• Filter by path — Use docs/ to import only documentation, not source code.
• Markdown files — .md and .mdx files are parsed with formatting preserved.
• README files — Great starting points for project overviews.
• Code files — You can import code files too, useful for agents that help developers.

Azure Blob Storage

Connect to Azure Blob Storage to import files stored in the cloud.

Setting Up Azure Blob

1. Click Add Source > Azure Blob Storage.
2. Enter your Azure connection details:

AZURE_STORAGE_ACCOUNT=your_storage_account
AZURE_STORAGE_KEY=your_storage_key
AZURE_CONTAINER_NAME=your_container

3. Optionally specify a prefix to filter which blobs to import.
4. Click Connect.

thinnestAI imports all supported files from the specified container and processes them.

Azure Tips

• Supported formats — Only files in supported formats (PDF, DOCX, TXT, etc.) are imported.
• Large containers — Use the prefix filter to target specific folders rather than importing everything.
• Refresh — Re-sync to pick up new files added after the initial import.

SharePoint

Import documents from Microsoft SharePoint sites.

Setting Up SharePoint

1. Click Add Source > SharePoint.
2. Authenticate with your Microsoft account.
3. Select the SharePoint site and document library.
4. Optionally filter by folder path.
5. Click Import.

SharePoint Tips

• Permissions — You need at least read access to the SharePoint site.
• Document libraries — Only document libraries are supported (not lists or pages).
• Supported formats — Same file format support as direct uploads.

Excel Workbooks

Import structured data from Excel files (.xlsx).

Adding Excel Files

1. Click Add Source > Excel (or upload an .xlsx file via File Upload).
2. Select the file.
3. Configure how the data should be processed:

Excel Tips

• Headers matter — Clear column headers help the agent understand the data structure.
• One topic per sheet — Organize related data in separate sheets for better results.
• Clean data — Remove empty rows, merged cells, and complex formatting before importing.
• Large spreadsheets — For very large files, consider importing specific sheets or ranges rather than the entire workbook.

Managing Sources

Viewing Sources

Open your knowledge base to see all sources with their:

• Name — The source title or filename
• Type — File, URL, YouTube, Text, etc.
• Status — Processing, Ready, or Error
• Added — When the source was added
• Size — Content size after processing

Deleting Sources

1. Find the source in the list.
2. Click the delete icon or select Delete.
3. Confirm the deletion.

The source and all its indexed content are removed immediately. This may affect agent responses that relied on that content.

Updating Sources

To update a source with new content:

1. Files — Delete the old file and upload the new version.
2. URLs — Delete and re-add the URL to fetch the latest page content.
3. Text — Edit the text source directly.

Next Steps

• Supported Formats & Limits — File sizes, format details, and processing limits.
• Knowledge Overview — How to assign knowledge to agents and how search works.