Create Answers with AI Voice Agents
Turn incoming emails into helpful voice responses. Optional triggers on emails (or manual test), answers with RAG using your Needle collection, converts to speech with ElevenLabs, and optionally emails the MP3 + text reply.
Last updated
October 10, 2025
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Key Takeaways
- Automated voice replies - Customer emails are answered with both text and natural-sounding audio
- RAG-grounded answers - Responses are based on your uploaded knowledge base, not generic AI output
- ElevenLabs integration - Text-to-speech converts answers into MP3 voice files
- Gmail-based trigger - The workflow activates when a new email arrives in your inbox
What This Workflow Does
This Needle workflow receives customer questions via email, retrieves answers from your knowledge base using RAG, converts the response to speech with ElevenLabs, and replies with both a text answer and a voice file attached.
Use cases:
- SaaS support: onboarding questions, feature explanations, billing inquiries
- E-commerce: order status, product questions, shipping info
- Consultants: client FAQs, scheduling, project updates
- Professional services: account questions, policy info, appointment confirmations
How It Works
| Step | What Happens |
|---|---|
| 1. Gmail trigger | The workflow triggers when a new customer email arrives |
| 2. AI search | RAG searches your Needle collection using the search_collection tool to find relevant answers |
| 3. Answer generation | GPT-5 generates a concise answer grounded in your uploaded docs |
| 4. Voice synthesis | ElevenLabs converts the text answer to natural speech (MP3) using the eleven_multilingual_v2 model |
| 5. Email reply | The customer receives a reply containing both the text answer and the MP3 voice file |
Requirements
| Tool | Purpose |
|---|---|
| Needle Collection | Upload your FAQs, product docs, and support guides for RAG |
| ElevenLabs Account | Text-to-speech API for generating voice responses |
| Gmail | Receiving customer questions and sending replies |
Setup Instructions
- Add the workflow template to Needle
- Upload your FAQs, product docs, and support guides to a Needle collection
- Connect your Gmail account to the Gmail trigger node
- Connect your ElevenLabs account with your API key
- Select your Needle collection for the AI search step
- Use Manual Trigger to test and refine prompts before enabling email automation
Customization
| What You Can Change | How |
|---|---|
| Knowledge base content | Upload different documents to your Needle collection |
| Voice settings | Adjust stability (default 0.7) and similarity_boost (default 0.85) in the ElevenLabs node |
| Voice selection | Choose a different ElevenLabs voice for a different tone |
| Email trigger filters | Add recipient filters to exclude specific addresses from automated responses |
| Email account | Connect a dedicated support email address that only receives customer requests |
Tips
| Tip | Why |
|---|---|
| Keep answers concise | Voice responses sound better when brief and focused |
| Use quality docs | Clear FAQs and product guides produce more accurate answers |
| Test with Manual Trigger first | Refine prompts before enabling email automation |
| Use a dedicated email | Prevents non-support emails from triggering the workflow |
FAQ
Q: What voice model does this use? A: The workflow uses ElevenLabs eleven_multilingual_v2 model with professional, calm tone settings.
Q: What format is the voice file? A: The voice response is delivered as an MP3 file attached to the reply email.
Q: Can I use this without the voice component? A: You can modify the workflow to send text-only replies by removing the ElevenLabs step.
Q: Does the customer get a text response too? A: Yes, the reply email includes both a text answer for quick scanning and an MP3 voice file.
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