Models and thinking

Every teammate has a brain you can dial up or down: a faster one for quick jobs, a deeper one for hard ones. This page shows you where to set it and how to pick well, so a teammate is as quick — or as thorough — as the task deserves.

In short

• A teammate’s work mode controls how quickly or carefully it handles a request. You set it in Agent Builder → Config.
• Balanced is the recommended default — capable, reliable, and good for most work.
• Pick Fast for quick, simple jobs; pick Deep for tricky, multi-step work.
• Thinking lets a teammate reason before it answers. More thinking helps on hard problems, costs a little more time.
• Deeper thinking and bigger models cost a bit more per request. You can cap spend with a budget limit.

Where this lives

Open Agent Builder for the teammate you want to tune, then the Config tab. You’ll find three settings stacked together: Model, Extended Thinking, and a per-request Budget limit.

A breakdown of what you’re looking at:

1. Work mode — the balance of speed, quality, and cost you’re choosing for this teammate. Each option shows a short note and a small tag.
2. Extended Thinking — a switch that lets the teammate reason step by step before replying, with an Effort level when it’s on.
3. Budget limit per query — an optional cap on how much a single request can spend.

Pick a work mode

Open the work-mode picker

In Config, find the work-mode card. It’s a short list — tap the circle next to the one you want.

Read it in plain terms — faster vs deeper

You don’t need to know model trivia. The simple rule:

Deeper

Deep modes think harder and handle complex, multi-step work best. Slower and a little pricier — worth it for the important stuff.

Faster

Fast modes reply quicker and cost less. Great for short, simple jobs.

The tag on each row tells you the practical trade-off: speed, depth, and expected cost.

Keep the recommended default if you're unsure

Balanced is marked recommended for most users and stays current automatically. If you’re not sure, leave it — it’s a strong all-rounder.

You’ll know it’s set when the circle next to your chosen work mode is filled in. Your choice saves with the rest of the teammate’s setup.

(Recommended) Start every teammate on Balanced. Switch to Fast when the teammate mostly does quick, repetitive jobs, and to Deep when the work needs extra care.

Turn on thinking when the work is hard

Some jobs need a teammate to reason carefully before answering — planning a multi-step task, weighing options, working through a tricky calculation. That’s what thinking is for.

A teammate with thinking on takes a short, private moment to reason things through before it replies. It tends to give steadier, better-considered answers on hard problems — and it isn’t needed for simple ones.

Flip the Extended Thinking switch

On the Extended Thinking card, turn the switch on. A short note explains it adjusts how hard the teammate reasons.

Choose an Effort level

With thinking on, an Effort menu appears — Max, High, Medium, or Low. Higher effort means more careful reasoning (better on hard work, a little slower and pricier); lower effort is quick and light.

A good middle setting: thinking on, effort Medium. Bump it to High or Max for a teammate that handles your hardest, most important work; leave it off for one that mostly answers quick questions.

Speed, quality, and cost — the trade-off

These three settings pull against each other in a simple way:

Quick and cheap

A fast work mode with thinking off (or on Low). Best for short, routine jobs — quick answers, simple drafts, status checks.

Deep and thorough

A deep work mode with thinking on at higher effort. Best for complex, important work where being right matters more than being fast. Costs a bit more per request.

You don’t have to get this perfect. The recommended default — Balanced with thinking on — is a sensible setting for most teammates, and you can adjust any time.

About cost

Deeper work modes and more thinking use more effort, so they cost a little more per request. The work-mode list shows a small cost tag on each option so the pricier-vs-cheaper trade-off is visible before you choose. To put a hard ceiling on any single request, turn on Budget limit per query and set an amount — the teammate won’t spend more than that on one job.

For how charges add up across your whole company and what’s included in your plan, see Billing and plans.

Changing the model or thinking level only affects how a teammate works — it never sends anything on its own. Ask before sending is ON; nothing goes out without your OK.

What if it isn’t working?

If a work-mode or thinking change doesn’t seem to take effect, check these first:

1. Wrong teammate — make sure you’re in Agent Builder for the teammate you meant to change, not a different one.
2. Change not saved — the setting saves with the rest of the teammate’s setup; finish saving in Agent Builder before testing.
3. Effort menu missing — the Effort level only appears after you turn Extended Thinking on.
4. Replies feel slow — that’s expected on a deeper mode or higher effort; switch to a faster mode or lower effort if speed matters more for that teammate.
5. A request stopped early — if you set a tight Budget limit, a big job may hit the cap; raise the amount or turn the limit off for that teammate.

Still stuck? See Getting help.

FAQ

Which work mode should I pick if I don't know?

Leave it on Balanced — it’s the recommended default, deep enough for most jobs, and it stays current automatically. Switch to Fast only for a teammate that mostly does quick, simple work.

What does 'thinking' actually do?

It lets a teammate reason step by step, privately, before it replies — like thinking before speaking. It helps on hard, multi-step problems and isn’t needed for simple questions. Turn it on and set the Effort level to control how much.

Will a faster mode give worse answers?

Not for simple jobs — a faster mode is plenty for quick questions and routine drafts. For complex, important work, a deeper mode handles the hard parts more reliably. Match the mode to the job.

Does a deeper mode or more thinking cost more?

A little, per request. Deeper modes and higher thinking effort use more of the model’s effort. The work-mode list shows a cost tag on each option, and you can cap any single request with Budget limit per query. See Billing and plans for the full picture.

Do I set this for each teammate separately?

Yes. Work mode and thinking are per-teammate, in each one’s Agent Builder → Config. So you can give your hardest-working teammate a deeper brain and keep a quick-question teammate fast and cheap.

Next steps

Agent Builder overview

See everything you can tune about a teammate in one place.

Digital employees explained

Understand what a teammate is before you fine-tune one.

Billing and plans

See how usage adds up and what your plan includes.

Chatting with your teammates

Put your tuned teammate to work in a conversation.