Tell Kola, Kolab's AI co-facilitator, what your session needs, and she'll build it in your space: timed agenda sections, the boards for each one, and the tools that run them. You don't need a separate builder. Just open Kola and describe the session.
Quick links: Build an agenda with Kola | Write a good request | Troubleshooting
Before You Start
- Hosts and facilitators only. Participants don't see Kola.
- Your plan needs to include Kola. Kola AI isn't included on Kolab Essentials. See Plans & Billing.
- Kola needs to be on for the space. She's on by default. See Turn Kola on or off for a space.
Meet Kola
Kola lives in your space, so you can plan an agenda and build the canvas without leaving the session.
Open Kola
- Click the Kola pill in the bottom-right of the screen, or
- Press Ctrl + J (or Cmd + J on Mac) to open and close her panel
Her panel opens in the bottom-right with a chat box ("Say something to Kola...") where you describe what you want.
| Control | What it does |
|---|---|
| Collapse Kola (the − button) | Shrinks Kola back to the pill. She stops listening and any spoken reply is muted. |
| Start fresh (the circular arrow) | Clears the conversation so you can start a new one |
| Stop | Cancels what Kola is doing, including a build in progress |
Build an Agenda with Kola
- Open Kola.
- Describe your session: how long it is, who's coming, and what you want to walk away with. (See Write a good request.)
- For a full agenda or workshop, Kola usually shows you a Plan card first, before she changes anything.
- Review the plan, then click Build this, Revise, or Discard.
- While she works, you'll see "Kola is building… this can take a minute."
- Open the Agenda to see the sections she added.
Result: Your agenda has timed sections, with the boards and tools each section needs already attached. Start a section and the room moves to the right board.
Review the Plan Card
Kola doesn't have a mode you switch on. She decides, request by request, whether to plan before building. Quick, low-risk asks ("add a timer") just get built. Bigger jobs, like designing a workshop, setting up an agenda, or making sweeping edits, usually get a plan first.
The plan card lists each step, grouped by what it touches (Boards, Canvas elements, Agenda, Tools). Click Show all steps to see the full list on a long plan.
| Button | What it does |
|---|---|
| Build this | Approve the plan. Kola makes the changes. |
| Revise | Opens a "What should change?" box. Type your feedback and click Send revision to get an updated plan. |
| Discard | Drop the plan. Nothing gets built. |
This works the same way whether you talk to Kola or type.
What Kola Adds
When she builds a session, Kola can:
- Add agenda sections with a duration, so each one gets its own built-in countdown
- Create boards for each section, starting from Kolab's board templates when one fits
- Create tools: timers, prompts, embeds, card decks, sticky banks, and ambient audio
- Set up breakout rooms and interactives
- Attach the boards and tools to the sections that use them
Tip: When Kola builds a board, she searches the template library first and prefers adapting a template that fits over starting from scratch. It usually makes for a more polished result.
Tip: Running one agenda per session? Kola can read and build any agenda in the space without switching what the room sees. Name the one you mean, like "add a closing round to the Session 2 agenda."
Tip: Already have a slide deck, lesson plan, or run-of-show? Paste the key points into the chat. Kola turns source material into hands-on activities rather than copying slides onto boards.
Change What Kola Built
- With Kola: Before building, use Revise on the plan. After building, just send a follow-up ("make the opening 5 minutes shorter", "swap the second activity for dot voting").
- By hand: Rename, retime, reorder, or reattach sections in the agenda panel. See Agenda.
Talk to Kola
You can talk to Kola as well as type. Two controls sit side by side in her chat box:
| Control | What it does | Best for |
|---|---|---|
| Tap to talk (mic) | Tap it, say what you need, and Kola listens for that one turn. She stops listening automatically after about 30 seconds of silence, and replies in the chat panel only. Her voice never plays into the room. | A quick ask with no risk of Kola talking over someone mid-meeting |
| Voice mode (sound-wave icon) | Starts a hands-free, spoken conversation where Kola replies out loud as well as in text. Tap the mic while voice mode is on to switch back to quiet dictation. | Back-and-forth planning where talking is faster than typing |
Good to know:
- Kola's mic is off whenever you open her. She never listens until you tap one of these controls, and every new session starts in text mode, no matter what you used last time.
- Collapsing her panel always stops her listening and mutes any spoken reply in progress.
- Kola never appears in the Participants panel, and Mute all doesn't target her.
Write a Good Request
The more context you give, the better the result.
Basic request:
"Create an agenda for a team brainstorming session"
Better request:
"Create a 90-minute agenda for a product brainstorming session with 12 participants. We want to generate new feature ideas for our mobile app. The team is remote and includes designers, developers, and product managers."
Best request:
"Create a 90-minute agenda for a product brainstorming session with 12 remote participants (4 designers, 5 developers, 3 PMs). Goal: generate 20+ new feature ideas for our mobile app's onboarding flow. We've done brainstorms before but energy tends to drop after 45 minutes. Include at least one activity that gets people moving on the canvas."
What to Include
| Detail | Example |
|---|---|
| Duration | "90 minutes", "2 hours", "half-day workshop" |
| Group size | "8 people", "25 participants", "large group of 50" |
| Objective | "generate ideas", "make a decision", "build alignment" |
| Participant context | "remote team", "first time meeting", "executives" |
| Constraints | "no breakout rooms", "must include Q&A", "energy drops" |
| Desired outcomes | "prioritized list", "action items", "shared understanding" |
Activities You Can Ask For
Name a technique and Kola will build around it:
| Activity | Best For | Group Size |
|---|---|---|
| Brainwriting | Idea generation | Any |
| Gallery Walk | Sharing/feedback | 8+ |
| Dot Voting | Prioritization | Any |
| Think-Pair-Share | Discussion | Any |
| Fishbowl | Deep discussion | 10+ |
| World Café | Multiple topics | 12+ |
| Lightning Talks | Knowledge sharing | Any |
| Affinity Mapping | Organization | Any |
Example Requests
Team retrospective
"Create a 60-minute retrospective agenda for a software team of 8. We just finished a difficult 3-month project. Some team members are frustrated. Goal: identify learnings and rebuild team morale."
Strategy workshop
"Design a half-day (4 hour) strategy workshop for 15 senior leaders. We need to align on next year's priorities. Include time for debate and decision-making. The group tends to go off on tangents."
Training session
"Plan a 2-hour training session on giving feedback. 20 participants, mixed experience levels. Should include practice opportunities."
Creative brainstorm
"90-minute brainstorm for 12 marketers. Goal: campaign ideas for product launch. We want quantity over quality initially, then narrow down. Make it fun and high-energy."
Ask Kola for Advice, Too
Kola isn't only a builder. You can ask her facilitation questions while you plan:
- "How do I explain dot voting to first-timers?"
- "What's a good icebreaker for a group that doesn't know each other?"
- "How should I synthesize these brainstorm results?"
Best Practices
Treat the First Build as a Draft
- Kola's agenda is a starting point. You know your participants better than she does.
- Check the timing of each section. Add buffer for transitions, late joiners, and technical hiccups.
- Swap unfamiliar activities for ones you've run before.
- For sessions over 60 minutes, build in a break or a movement activity.
Iterate
If the first plan isn't right:
- Add more context and ask again
- Say what's wrong: "Too many activities" or "Needs more interaction"
- Ask for options: "Give me 3 different approaches"
Save What Works
When an agenda works well, save it as an agenda template so you can reuse it. See Agenda templates.
Turn Kola On or Off for a Space
Kola is on for every space by default. To turn her off, either:
- Click More settings (⋮) in the bottom-left control bar and switch off Kola AI, or
- Open the Share dialog and, under Space Controls, switch off Kola AI co-facilitator
When it's off, Kola never joins the space, including during setup. The Kola pill disappears, and Ctrl + J (Cmd + J on Mac) stops opening her.
Troubleshooting
"I don't see Kola"
- Kola only appears for hosts and facilitators. Ask the host to raise your access.
- Kola may be turned off for this space. Check More settings (⋮) → Kola AI.
- Kola isn't included on Kolab Essentials. See Plans & Billing.
"The plan isn't what I wanted"
Click Revise, say what should change, and click Send revision. Or click Discard and ask again with more detail.
"Kola built something I don't want"
Ask her to remove or change it in a follow-up message, or edit it by hand. Sections live in the Agenda, and boards and tools live in the agenda panel's Library tab.
"I can't find the boards Kola built"
If your space has more than one agenda, Kola can build into any of them, not just the live one. The agenda panel only lists the boards and tools of the agenda you're on, so switch to the agenda she built from the agenda menu. See Each agenda keeps its own boards and tools.
"The timing seems off"
Tell Kola how your group actually runs ("our discussions always run long") and ask her to adjust, or retime the sections yourself in the agenda.
Related Guides
- Agenda - Edit and run your session in timed sections
- Board Templates - The templates Kola builds from
- Interactives - Live mini-apps Kola can build for your session
- Connect via MCP - Drive Kolab from Claude or another AI assistant
- Your First Session - Facilitation fundamentals