---
sourceDocument: Yokohama Conversational Interfaces
sourceDocumentLink: https://servicenow-prod.fluidtopics.net/r/yokohama/conversational-interfaces

 Release :

    - yokohama

ft:locale :

    - en-US

ft:publication_title :

    - Yokohama Conversational Interfaces

ft:clusterId :

    - convint

bundleId :

    - convint

workflow :

    - Platform


---

# Using Virtual Agent Topic Recommendations

# Using Virtual Agent
Topic Recommendations {#ariaid-title1}

Release version: Yokohama  
Updated January 30, 2025  
![](https://www.servicenow.com/docs/portal-asset/ico-clock) 3 minutes to read
Summarize  
![AI sparkle icon](https://servicenow.com/docs/portal-asset/ai-sparkle-icon) Summarized using AI  
This content was generated using new OpenAI-powered functionality. Results are provided on an as is basis and are not guaranteed to be accurate or complete.  

## Summary of Using Virtual Agent Topic Recommendations

The Topic Recommendations app helps ServiceNow customers quickly identify and implement pre-built Virtual Agent topics tailored to their organization's needs.
By leveraging Intent Discovery, the app analyzes your organization's data to find relevant pre-built topics and suggest new topics that would be beneficial to create.
This functionality supports Virtual Agent topics using both keyword and Natural Language Understanding (NLU) topic discovery, enabling more effective self-service automation.
Show full answer Show less  

## Key Features

* **Data Analysis Configuration:** Choose which ServiceNow data to analyze for topic recommendations.
* **Automated Analysis:** Run configured analyses to identify common use cases that Virtual Agent can address or deflect.
* **Pre-built Topic Utilization:** Duplicate suggested topics, such as those from ITSM Virtual Agent Conversations available in the ServiceNow Store.
* **NLU Intent Integration:** For NLU-enabled discovery, add new intents and create corresponding empty topics; flows for these topics must be designed in Virtual Agent Designer.
* **Compatibility:** Supports ITSM Virtual Agent recommendations as of the Yokohama release and integrates with both keyword and NLU topic discovery methods.

## Prerequisites and Requirements

* **Plugins and Applications:** Requires activation of Glide Virtual Agent plugin (com.glide.cs.chatbot), NLU Workbench (for NLU discovery), Intent Discovery (for NLU), and ITSM Virtual Agent Conversations from the ServiceNow Store.
* **Entitlements:** Valid ServiceNow entitlements must be ensured for the app and related Store applications.
* **Installation:** Topic Recommendations is automatically installed with Glide Virtual Agent plugin activation starting in the San Diego release; otherwise, it must be installed from the ServiceNow Store.

## Installed Components

* **Scheduled Jobs:** Jobs that run Topic Recommendation reports at set intervals.
* **Tables:** Includes tables for default recommendation settings and staging recommended topics, facilitating management of source data, taxonomy, filters, and generated topic recommendations.

## Practical Use and Next Steps

* Get started by defining default settings for recommendations.
* Run analyses to generate topic recommendations based on your organization's data.
* Add recommended topics or intents to your Virtual Agent to expand automated self-service capabilities.
* Link or unlink topic recommendations to existing Virtual Agent topics to customize your conversational workflows.
* Consult troubleshooting resources if issues arise during implementation or analysis.

This app streamlines the process of identifying valuable Virtual Agent topics, helping ServiceNow customers enhance their self-service offerings, improve user experience, and reduce manual workload through automation.  
Use the Topic Recommendations app to identify pre-built Virtual Agent topics that can be quickly implemented in your organization. Topic Recommendations uses Intent Discovery to analyze data from
your organization and to find relevant pre-built topics that your organization can benefit from,
and new topics that would be useful to create.
The Topic Recommendations app lets you evaluate the common use cases that Virtual Agent can help resolve or deflect. You can use Topic Recommendations with Virtual Agent topics that use either keyword or NLU topic discovery. Use it to do the following:

1. Choose the ServiceNow data to analyze (configure analysis).
2. Analyze your existing data (run the analysis you configured).
3. Review the analysis results and use pre-built solutions:
   * Duplicate a pre-built topic suggestion, such as a topic from ITSM Virtual Agent Conversations (available from the ServiceNow Store).
   * \[NLU only\] Add an intent to your model and a new empty topic. You must provide the flow for the new topic in Virtual Agent Designer.
   {#va-topic-recommendations__ul_r3t_gmz_nrb}
{#va-topic-recommendations__ol_cgf_xlz_nrb}

The Topic Recommendations app requires NLU Workbench and ITSM
Virtual Agent Conversations from the ServiceNow Store. The Yokohama release of Topic Recommendations supports only
ITSM Virtual Agent recommendations. Although Topic Recommendations uses NLU
Workbench for machine learning purposes, it does not require that NLU be enabled in Virtual Agent.

For information about the apps that are automatically installed with Topic Recommendations, see [Update Topic Recommendations](https://servicenow-prod.fluidtopics.net/t25UQbppc5jPeuzrDgQdtg "You can install updates to the Topic Recommendations application (com.snc.va_topic_recommender) if you have the admin role.").

## Required plugins {#va-topic-recommendations__section_vsp_bfb_ttb}

* Ensure that the application and all of its associated ServiceNow Store applications have valid ServiceNow entitlements. For more information, see [Get entitlement for a ServiceNow
  product or application](https://store.servicenow.com/$appstore.do#!/store/help?article=KB0030186).
* Topic Recommendations requires the following plugins and ServiceNow Store applications. Ensure that they are activated before you install Topic Recommendations.

  Required ServiceNow plugins
  :

      Glide Virtual Agent (com.glide.cs.chatbot)
      :   Activates all the plugins needed to run Virtual Agent Pro.
          For details, see [Activate Virtual Agent](https://servicenow-prod.fluidtopics.net/44TNep1rV652KOPX~~wH8A "You can activate the Glide Virtual Agent plugin (com.glide.cs.chatbot) if you have the admin role. This plugin automatically activates other necessary plugins if they are not already active.").  
          Note:  
          Starting with the San Diego release, the Topic Recommendations app is automatically installed when you initially activate the Glide Virtual Agent plugin (com.glide.cs.chatbot). Subsequent updates for this app must be installed from the ServiceNow Store.

      NLU Workbench (NLU topic discovery only)
      :   Activates the plugins needed to run Natural Language Understanding in your
          instance. For more information, see Activate the NLU Workbench.

  Required ServiceNow Store applications
  :

      Intent Discovery (NLU discovery
      only)
      :   Identifies user intents from analyzing incident/case data. To learn more,
          see Intent Discovery.

      ITSM Virtual Agent Conversations
      :   Provides pre-built IT service management conversations to help your
          organization quickly deploy automated self-service conversations. For more
          information, see ITSM Virtual Agent.
{#va-topic-recommendations__ul_uvw_xy3_m4b}

## Items installed with Topic Recommendations {#va-topic-recommendations__section_i5c_qfb_ttb}

The following items are installed with Topic Recommendations:

* Scheduled jobs: Run Topic Recommendation Reports for running Topic Recommendation reports at scheduled times.
* The following tables are installed:{#va-topic-recommendations__table_xc4_gtn_44b__entry__2}

  | Table | Description |
  |-|-|
  | Default settings for Topic Recommendations \[sn_topic_recommend_default_setting\] | The source data (table and text field), taxonomy, and filters used when running a Topic Recommendations analysis |
  | Installed recommended topics \[sn_topic_recommend_topic_staging\] | Topics generated for recommended topics |
  [ ]

  {#va-topic-recommendations__table_xc4_gtn_44b}
{#va-topic-recommendations__ul_wvw_xy3_m4b}

## Request apps on the Store {#va-topic-recommendations__section_ozy_bc4_l4b}

Visit the [ServiceNow Store](https://store.servicenow.com/sn_appstore_store.do#!/store/home) website to view all the available apps and for information about submitting requests to the store. For cumulative release notes information for all released apps, see the [ServiceNow Store version history release notes](https://www.servicenow.com/docs/r/store-release-notes/sn-store-release-notes.html).{#va-topic-recommendations__inline-send-to-store}

## What to do {#va-topic-recommendations__section_hql_5qx_m4b}

* [Get started with Topic
  Recommendations](https://servicenow-prod.fluidtopics.net/dKsah09lOlpDFlSLejKjYw "To get recommended topics based on your data, configure analysis reports, run the reports, and then review the results. You can either add new topics to Virtual Agent or link a recommendation to an existing topic.")
* [Define default recommendation
  settings](https://servicenow-prod.fluidtopics.net/SR3kaUVFy45IrOEPFXXz9g "To generate Topic Recommendations, specify a default data source (ServiceNow table and field) and the conditions for filtering the data records.")
* [Run a Topic Recommendation analysis](https://servicenow-prod.fluidtopics.net/DJIQrAvP6a2bUdvpjnqLYw "Generate a report that analyzes a given data source and identifies the appropriate Virtual Agent pre-built topics that you can implement. For intents that do not have matching pre-built topics, the report identifies the user intents (topics) that you can create.")
* [Add recommended topics and intents to Virtual Agent](https://servicenow-prod.fluidtopics.net/zrBOff8BhYoJ8Jt7G4~2hg "After you run and review a Topic Recommendations report, select the pre-built topics and suggested intents to add to Virtual Agent.")
* [Link a
  topic recommendation to an existing Virtual Agent topic](https://servicenow-prod.fluidtopics.net/pkT6gskXp6bPlLNIWN~0lg "Instead of creating a new topic from a topic recommendation, you can link it to an existing topic. This lets Virtual Agent know that you have a topic that addresses the recommendation.")
* [Unlink a topic
  recommendation from an existing Virtual Agent topic](https://servicenow-prod.fluidtopics.net/rJ4vNzDLTsWxTMsE4v17HA "You can unlink a topic recommendation from a topic. This lets you link it to a new or alternate topic.")
* [Troubleshoot issues with Topic Recommendations](https://servicenow-prod.fluidtopics.net/vyg0qyH6xvEW0zOZIYWW0g "Investigate and resolve unexpected behavior with Topic Recommendations, or find answers to common questions.")
{#va-topic-recommendations__ul_l5d_1pz_n4b}