The Ask AI action with the Dedicated AI Server source lets you connect your automations to an AI server you fully control. It is the most sovereign and customizable option : your models, on your own infrastructure.

Overview

The dedicated AI server can be of two types:

Prerequisites

Before using this action, an AI server must be configured and reachable. You will need the following:

• An access URL for the server
• Valid authentication credentials if the server requires them
• One or more models deployed and running on that server

Server configuration is typically handled by a technical administrator. If your server has not yet been set up, contact your IT team or reach out to TimeTonic.

Model detection

When configuring the action, TimeTonic automatically queries the server to detect available models. They then appear in the selection list.

If no models appear in the list, check the following:

Configuring the role and prompt

As with all AI actions in TimeTonic, two fields structure your call to the model:

💡 A clear role and a precise prompt significantly improve the quality and consistency of results produced by the model.

For PDF or image analysis, a specific prompt is required → See OCR PDF & images prompts

Attachments

Select a field containing image files to pass to the model. These files will be included in the request if the model installed on your server supports document analysis.

⚠️ Attachment support depends on the model deployed on your server. Verify this capability before using it in production.

For PDF file processing → See the OCR PDF & images procedure

Token parameter

The Maximum token count field caps the length of the response generated by the model.

Adjust this parameter to match the nature of the task → limiting tokens helps control your TimeTonic credit consumption. A 100-token response costs ten times less than a 1,000-token response.

The token count directly impacts your credit consumption. To anticipate the impact before configuring your action → Estimate your AI credit consumption

6. Response format

The response format determines how the AI-generated response will be structured and stored in your notebook. Two options are available:

💡 The Structured JSON format requires a specific prompt in the Prompt field to instruct the model on which data to extract and in what structure → especially for PDF or image analysis. Each JSON key then maps to a destination field in your record.

See the OCR PDF & images configuration →

7. Response field

This field determines where the AI response will be stored in your notebook. Its behavior depends directly on the format selected in the previous step.

Best practices

• Verify attachment compatibility before using this option in production → not all models support it.
• Write a precise and consistent role aligned with the expected task → this is the single most impactful factor on output quality.
• Limit the token count to match the actual requirement and avoid unnecessary load on your server.
• Test the action on a real use case before deploying at scale → validate output quality and connection stability.