Connecting Google Chat as a Knowledge Source
Surface the knowledge already living in your team's conversations.
Written by Outlearn Documentation
Updated at April 24th, 2026
Table of Contents
Your team works through problems in Google Chat every day. The answers are in there - in Spaces, in threads, in the messages where your team documents how things actually work. That knowledge does not have to disappear when the conversation ends.
Connecting Google Chat as a source gives your agent access to those conversations. The answers your team has already worked out once become available the next time someone asks, without anyone having to type them again.
In this article, you'll learn:
- What gets synced when you connect Google Chat as a source
- How to connect your Google Chat account
- How to manage the connection
What Gets Connected
When you connect Google Chat as a knowledge source, Outlearn syncs messages and conversations from the channels or threads you authorize. Your data stays in Google Chat - Outlearn reads it, it never modifies or moves it.
Note: Connecting Google Chat as a knowledge source is different from deploying your agent inside Google Chat. This article covers using Google Chat as a source only. To deploy your agent to Google Chat, see the Deploying to Google Chat section.
How to Connect Google Chat
- Go to the Sources tab.
- Click + Add Knowledge.
- In the Add Knowledge Sources modal, click Team Chats in the left panel.
- Select Google Chat.
- Log in to your Google Chat account when prompted and authorize Outlearn to access your messages.
- Follow the on-screen steps to select which channels or conversations to sync and set accessibility.
After Connecting
Once connected, Google Chat will appear in your Sources list and Outlearn will keep it in sync automatically.
From the Sources list you can:
- Change accessibility using the dropdown next to the source.
- Toggle it on or off using the In Use toggle.
- Resync manually using the three-dot menu.
- Delete the connection using the three-dot menu.
Best Practices
- Be selective about which channels you connect - not every conversation is useful as a knowledge source. Focus on channels where team members share answers, guides, or resolved issues.
- Set accessibility to Internal - team chat content is almost always internal knowledge not suited for public-facing agents.
- Avoid connecting channels with high noise-to-signal ratios (e.g., general chat, off-topic channels) as this can dilute answer quality.