1 Getting Started

Supported Browsers

Mobile Devices

Webcast.chat works on iOS Safari and Android Chrome. While all core features work (video, audio, chat, hand raising), some desktop-only features like screen sharing are not available on mobile browsers.

Accessing the App

Navigate to webcast.chat in any supported browser. You can:

• Create an account to host and manage meetings
• Join as a guest using a meeting URL — no account required

2 Account Management

Creating an Account

1. Click "Create Account" on the login page
2. Enter your display name, email address, and choose a password (minimum 8 characters)
3. Review and agree to the Terms of Service, Privacy Statement, and Data Processing Agreement
4. Click "Create Account"
5. Check your email for a verification link and click "Verify Email"
6. Sign in with your credentials

Guest Access (No Account Required)

Guests can join meetings directly using a meeting URL without creating an account. When joining as a guest:

1. Open the meeting URL in your browser
2. Enter your email address (must be a valid email format)
3. Enter a display name
4. Enter the meeting password if required
5. Click "Join Meeting"

Password Reset

1. Click "Forgot Password?" on the login page
2. Enter your email address
3. Check your inbox for a reset link (valid for 1 hour)
4. Enter and confirm your new password

3 Dashboard Overview

After signing in, your Dashboard provides three main tabs:

Meetings Tab

View all your created meetings. Each meeting card shows the title, meeting code, scheduled date, and quick actions (copy URL, refresh URL, edit, delete, send invites).

History Tab

View records of past meetings you've attended (join time, leave time, duration). History recording is OFF by default for privacy — enable it in Settings.

Settings Tab

Manage your profile, blocked users list, meeting history toggle, API key, and subscription.

4 Meeting Types Explained

Webcast.chat supports four meeting types. Choose the one that best fits your use case:

Feature Comparison

5 Creating & Managing Meetings

Creating a Meeting

1. Go to the Meetings tab in your Dashboard
2. Click "New Meeting"
3. Enter a Meeting Title (required)
4. Optionally add a Description
5. Select the Meeting Type (1:1 P2P, 1:1 Featured, Group, or Webinar)
6. Configure optional settings:
   • Co-host emails — add email addresses of co-hosts
   • Enable Waiting Room — participants wait until admitted by host
   • Enforce Blocked Users List — prevent blocked users from joining (ON by default)
   • Scheduled Date & Time — for scheduled meetings
   • Recurring Meeting — set recurrence pattern (daily, weekly, monthly)
7. Click "Create Meeting"

After creation, you'll see the Meeting ID (12-digit code), Password (6-digit), and Meeting URL. Copy and share these with your participants.

Recurring Meetings

Set up repeating meetings with flexible scheduling:

• Daily — every N days
• Weekly — choose specific days (Mon, Wed, Fri, etc.)
• Monthly — by day of month (e.g., 1st) or ordinal weekday (e.g., first Monday)
• End condition — never, after N occurrences, or on a specific date

Sharing Meeting URLs

Each meeting has a unique URL: https://webcast.chat/join/xxxx?mid=123456789012&pwd=654321

• Click the copy icon next to any meeting to copy its URL
• Use "Send Invites" to email meeting details directly from Webcast
• Invitees receive an email with the meeting title, URL, date, and join instructions

Refreshing a Meeting URL

To invalidate old links (security measure):

1. Click the refresh icon on a meeting card
2. A new URL is generated — old links will no longer work
3. Share the new URL with participants

Editing and Deleting Meetings

• Edit: Click on a meeting card to modify its title, description, schedule, co-hosts, waiting room, and blocked list settings
• Delete: Click the trash icon and confirm — this permanently removes the meeting

6 Joining a Meeting

For Registered Users

1. Click or paste a Webcast.chat meeting URL
2. If not signed in, you will be redirected to the login page first
3. Enter the meeting password if prompted
4. If a waiting room is enabled, you will wait until the host admits you
5. Once admitted, your camera and microphone will activate

For Guest Users (No Account)

1. Open the meeting URL in your browser
2. Click "Join as Guest"
3. Enter your email address and display name
4. Enter the meeting password
5. Wait in the waiting room if enabled, or join directly

Joining by Meeting Code

If you have the 12-digit meeting code and password:

1. Navigate to webcast.chat/join
2. Enter the Meeting Code
3. Enter the Password
4. Click "Join"

7 Host & Co-Host Controls

Hosts and co-hosts have additional controls to manage the meeting:

Host Capabilities

• Mute/unmute participants — force-mute disruptive attendees
• Ask to unmute — send an unmute request to a specific participant
• Remove participants — kick a participant from the meeting (auto-adds to blocked list)
• Rename participants — change a participant's displayed name
• Lower hand — lower a participant's raised hand
• Lock/unlock meeting — prevent new participants from joining
• Admit from waiting room — individually or all at once
• End call for all — disconnect all participants and close the meeting

Co-Host Capabilities

Co-hosts share most host capabilities except ending the call for all. To add co-hosts:

1. During meeting creation or editing, enter co-host email addresses
2. When co-hosts join the meeting, they automatically receive elevated permissions
3. Co-hosts are identified by their registered email address

End Call Options

• End Call For All — available to the host when they are the sole host. Disconnects everyone.
• Leave Meeting — available when co-hosts are present. Host leaves but meeting continues.
• Regular participants see a single "Leave Call" button.

8 Participant Management

Participants Panel

Open the Participants panel to see all attendees. The panel shows:

• Participant name and role (Host, Co-Host, Participant)
• Audio/video status indicators
• Hand raised indicator with numeric order
• Host controls (mute, unmute request, kick, rename, lower hand)

Hand Raising

Participants can raise their hand to signal they want to speak:

• Click the hand raise button in the control bar
• The host sees who raised their hand and in what order (numbered)
• The host can lower a hand from the Participants panel
• Participants can also lower their own hand by clicking the button again

Polls (Group & Webinar)

Hosts can create live polls during meetings:

1. Open the Polls panel
2. Type a question and add answer options
3. Launch the poll — all participants see it and can vote
4. Results are shown in real time

9 Waiting Room

The waiting room lets hosts screen participants before they enter the meeting.

How It Works

1. Host enables waiting room when creating or editing a meeting
2. When a participant joins, they see a "Please wait, the host will let you in shortly" message
3. The host's Waiting Room panel shows the number of people waiting
4. The host can admit individually or admit all
5. Once admitted, the participant is connected to the meeting

Scenario: Screening Participants

Ideal for interviews, classified meetings, or any situation where you want to verify who is joining before granting access.

10 Breakout Rooms (Group Meetings)

Breakout Rooms allow hosts and co-hosts to split a group meeting into smaller sub-rooms for focused discussions, workshops, training exercises, or team activities. Each breakout room has fully isolated audio, video, and chat.

Creating Breakout Rooms

• During a Group meeting, click the Breakout Rooms icon (⊞) in the top bar
• Click "Create Breakout Rooms" to open the setup panel
• Choose the number of rooms (2–10)
• Optionally enable Auto-assign to randomly distribute participants
• Set an optional timer (in minutes) — when it expires, all participants automatically return to the main room
• Click "Create Rooms" to finalize the setup

Assigning Participants

• In the setup view, each room shows its participants as chips
• Click "Add Participant" on any room to assign unassigned participants
• Use the "Shuffle" button to randomly redistribute all participants
• Click the ✕ on a participant chip to remove them from a room
• New participants who join the meeting stay in the main room until the host assigns them
• Hosts and co-hosts are never assigned to breakout rooms — they can join any room freely

Renaming Rooms

• Click the pencil icon next to a room name during setup
• Enter a descriptive name (e.g., "Team Alpha", "Topic: Marketing", "Table 3")

Starting the Breakout Session

• Click "Start" when all assignments are ready
• Assigned participants will be automatically moved to their breakout room
• Each participant's media (camera, microphone) is preserved during the transition
• If a timer was set, a countdown is displayed to all participants

Host Controls During Active Breakout

• Join any room: Click "Join" on any room card to enter and observe or participate
• Leave a room: You'll be returned to the main room view
• Broadcast message: Send a message to all rooms or a specific room — participants see it as a banner notification
• Reassign participants: Move participants between rooms even during an active session
• End breakout: Click "End Breakout" — all participants receive a 60-second warning before being returned to the main room

Participant Experience

• Participants see a purple banner showing their breakout room name and timer countdown
• They can only see and hear other participants in the same room
• Chat messages are scoped to the breakout room — no cross-room chat
• Participants can "Message Host" at any time to send a direct message that the host sees in the management panel
• When the session ends, all participants are automatically returned to the main room

AI Features in Breakout Rooms

• Text transcription carries over to breakout rooms — participants can see captions
• Audio translation remains a main room only feature and is not available in breakout rooms

Use Cases

• Education: Split students into study groups, assign discussion topics, circulate between groups
• Corporate training: Run team exercises, role-playing scenarios, or case study analyses
• Workshops: Facilitate brainstorming sessions with smaller groups, then reconvene
• Language practice: Pair learners for conversation practice with timed rotations
• Team building: Create fun activities where teams compete in separate rooms

11 Blocked Users & Security

Hosts can maintain a blocked email list to prevent specific users from joining any of their meetings.

How Blocking Works

• Blocked users are checked by both email address and IP address
• When a blocked user tries to join, they see an "Access Denied" screen
• Blocked users cannot bypass this — even with a different email, their IP is also checked
• The block applies to all meetings the host creates (unless the host toggles it off per meeting)

Auto-Blocking on Kick

When a host removes (kicks) a participant from a meeting:

• The participant's email and IP address are automatically added to the host's blocked list
• The note "Auto-blocked: removed from meeting" is recorded
• The participant cannot rejoin until the host manually removes them from the blocked list

Managing Your Blocked List

1. Go to Settings → Blocked Users
2. View all blocked emails, their IP addresses, notes, and block dates
3. To add a block: enter an email address and optional note, click "Block"
4. To remove a block: click the trash icon next to the entry

Per-Meeting Toggle

When creating or editing a meeting, you can toggle "Enforce Blocked Users List":

• ON (default) — your blocked list is enforced for this meeting
• OFF — anyone can join regardless of your blocked list

12 During a Meeting

Control Bar

Screen Sharing

1. Click the screen share icon
2. Choose what to share: entire screen, application window, or browser tab
3. Click "Share" in the browser prompt
4. Your screen appears in the meeting for all participants
5. Click the screen share icon again to stop

Virtual Backgrounds (Pro)

Replace or blur your background during calls:

1. Click the virtual background icon in the control bar
2. Choose from Blur, Preset images, or Upload custom image
3. The effect is applied in real time using on-device AI processing

In-Meeting Chat

Open the Chat panel to send text messages during the meeting. Chat supports:

• Text messages visible to all participants
• File sharing and attachments
• Emoji support
• Messages are visible throughout the meeting, and are deleted from Webcast's servers shortly after the meeting ends (see Security & Privacy)

Gallery View

In group calls, participant videos are arranged in an auto-fitting grid that adjusts based on the number of active video tiles and your screen size.

Security Badge

The badge in the top bar tells you — from the room's live, observed state — exactly who can access your audio and video right now:

• 🔒 End-to-end encrypted (green) — media is encrypted in your browser and only the people on the call hold the keys. Webcast's servers relay data they cannot read. Transcription, translation, and other AI features are unavailable while this is on.
• 🔒 Encrypted (blue) — media is encrypted in transit; nobody on the network can read it, but Webcast's media server processes the streams in order to route them. This is the level shown whenever end-to-end encryption is not active — including while recording or broadcasting is running, because those require server-side processing.

Hover over the badge for a plain-language explanation of the current level. See the Security & Privacy section for the full picture.

13 AI Features (Pro)

Pro plan includes powerful AI capabilities accessible from the AI Panel during meetings:

Real-Time Transcription

Automatic speech-to-text transcription in 36 languages. The transcription appears live as participants speak. Powered by Google Cloud Speech-to-Text.

Live Text Translation (Shared, On Request)

Real-time translation of the meeting transcription. Translation is off by default — it never starts just because your language differs from the spoken language:

1. Any participant can press Translate in the AI Panel to request translation into their language
2. A host or co-host approves or declines the request — this keeps AI token spending under the host's control
3. Once approved, one shared translation is generated per language pair (for example English → Arabic) and delivered to every participant who requested that pair — the work is done once, not once per person
4. Translation for a language pair stops automatically when no participant subscribes to it any more

Live Audio Translation (Shared, On Request)

Spoken audio is translated and played back in the listener's language using AI text-to-speech. Audio translation follows the same model as text translation: a participant requests it, a host or co-host approves it, one shared translation serves everyone listening to the same language pair, and it stops when nobody is subscribed.

Meeting Summary

AI generates a concise summary of the meeting discussion including:

• Key points — main topics discussed
• Action items — tasks assigned with responsible parties
• Key notes — important details and decisions

AI Chat

Ask the AI assistant questions about the meeting content, request clarifications, or get instant answers based on the discussion context.

Live Captions

Subtitle-style captions overlaid on the video feed in your chosen language, ideal for accessibility or multilingual meetings.

Meeting Minutes Email

After the meeting, automatically email the full meeting minutes (transcript, summary, action items) to all participants.

AI and Your Privacy

• Speech is processed by Google Cloud Speech-to-Text; text features (translation, summaries, minutes, AI chat) run on Google Gemini, routed through a zero-data-retention gateway wherever possible — your content is not stored by the AI provider and is never used to train models
• In an end-to-end encrypted meeting, AI features are not available at all — the servers never hold the key, so there is nothing they could transcribe. Choose end-to-end encryption or AI features when you create the meeting; you cannot have both
• Transcripts, summaries, and other AI output are automatically deleted from Webcast's servers shortly after the meeting ends — see Security & Privacy

Whiteboard Tools

Selecting & Editing Objects

• Click to select a single object
• Shift+Click to add/remove objects from the selection
• Marquee select — click and drag on empty space to select all objects within a rectangle
• Handles — resize (corner/edge handles) and rotate (top handle)
• Ctrl+C / Ctrl+V — copy and paste objects
• Ctrl+D — duplicate with offset
• Delete — remove selected objects
• [ / ] — send backward / bring forward (z-order)
• Ctrl+A — select all objects

Grouping & Ungrouping Objects

Select multiple objects (Shift+Click or marquee select), then:

• Ctrl+G — Group selected objects into one unit
• Ctrl+Shift+G — Ungroup a grouped object back to individual parts
• Grouped objects move, resize, and rotate as one unit
• You can also use the Group and Ungroup toolbar buttons in the toolbar

Right-Click Context Menu

Right-click on selected objects to access a context menu with common actions:

Note: The right-click context menu only appears when one or more objects are selected with the Select tool.

14 AI Tokens & Billing

All AI-powered features in Webcast.chat — transcription, translation, summarization, Whiteboard AI, Document AI, and Table Analytics AI — consume AI Tokens. This section explains how credits work, who pays, and how to manage them.

How AI Tokens Work

AI Tokens are measured in tokens. Each AI token corresponds to one LLM token. Every time an AI feature is used (e.g., transcribing speech, translating text, generating a summary), the system calculates the number of tokens consumed and deducts them from the token balance.

Types of AI Tokens

When AI features are used, promotional tokens are consumed first. Once promotional credits are exhausted, purchased tokens are used.

AI Token Deduction< Per Feature

Each AI feature consumes tokens at different rates depending on the complexity and model used:

Who Pays for AI Tokens< in a Meeting?

AI tokens follow a host-pays model:

• The meeting host pays for all AI usage — regardless of whether the host, a participant, or a guest uses the AI features. All token deductions come from the host's account.
• Participants and guests do not need their own tokens — they use the host's tokens during the meeting.
• The host can see their real-time token balance in the AI Panel during the meeting.

Co-Host AI Token Override<

If the host has disabled AI features for a meeting (see below), a co-host (must have co-host role, not a regular participant) who is logged in with their own account can choose to enable AI features using their own AI tokens. In this scenario:

• The co-host's tokens are used instead of the host's
• The co-host's AI features are shared with all participants in the meeting
• Only one person (host or co-host) pays for the AI Panel at a time

Enabling and Disabling AI Features Per Meeting

Hosts can control AI features at the per-meeting level:

• During meeting creation: Toggle the "Enable AI Features" switch (default: ON). When OFF, all AI features are disabled for all participants.
• On the meeting dashboard: Meetings with AI disabled show a red "AI Off" chip. Edit the meeting to re-enable AI at any time.
• During a meeting: The host can toggle AI features from the meeting settings.

This is useful for meetings where AI is not needed, such as casual conversations or confidential discussions where no transcription is desired.

Monitoring Your AI Tokens<

You can check your AI token balance at any time from your Dashboard:

1. Go to the Settings tab in your Dashboard
2. Look for the "AI Tokens" section
3. View your Promotional Tokens balance and Purchased Tokens balance
4. View your total Usage History (tokens consumed over time)

During a meeting, the AI Panel also shows a real-time indicator of your token balance.

Purchasing AI Tokens< (Recharging)

1. Click the "Buy AI Tokens" button in your Dashboard Settings or in the AI Panel during a meeting
2. Each purchase provides 5,000,000 tokens for US $5
3. Tokens are added to your Purchased Tokens balance immediately
4. There is no limit to how many token packages you can purchase
5. Purchased tokens never expire

AI Tokens Refund Policy

Refund policies for AI tokens are as follows:

• Promotional Tokens: Non-refundable. These are complimentary and cannot be converted to cash.
• Purchased Tokens: Refundable within the terms outlined in our Terms of Service. To request a refund for unused purchased AI tokens:
  1. Contact support via the Feedback form in the user dashboard or email support@webcast.chat
  2. Provide your account email and the transaction reference
  3. Refunds are processed for the unused portion of your purchased credits only
  4. Refunds are issued to the original payment method within 5–10 business days
• Account Cancellation: When canceling your account, any unused purchased AI tokens can be refunded upon request before the account is permanently deleted. Promotional credits are forfeited upon account cancellation.

15 Recording & File Saving (Pro)

Meeting Recording

1. Click the Recording button in the control bar
2. All participants see a recording indicator
3. Click again to stop recording
4. The recording is saved locally and/or to your configured directory

Auto-Save Meeting Artifacts

When the meeting ends, Webcast automatically saves:

• Full transcription (text)
• AI summary with action items
• Chat history
• Poll results

Files are saved to the directory you selected in the save dialog or promptly downloaded. Server-side copies of meeting content are deleted about 30 minutes after the meeting ends (see Security & Privacy) — save anything you want to keep.

16 Settings & Preferences

Display Name

Update your display name that appears in meetings and your profile.

Meeting History Recording

• Default: OFF — no meeting records are stored
• ON — timestamps and duration are recorded (encrypted)
• Turning OFF deletes all history — with confirmation prompt

Blocked Users

Manage your blocked email list (see section 10 above).

API Key

Your auto-generated API key for programmatic access. Use it with the Webcast REST API to create meetings, send invites, and manage your account.

Subscription

View your current plan (Free or Pro), manage billing, and upgrade/downgrade.

17 Security & Privacy

Encryption — An Honest Overview

Webcast always encrypts your media, but not every meeting is end-to-end encrypted. The in-meeting badge always shows the protection level actually in effect, derived from the live state of the room — never from a configuration label:

How End-to-End Encryption Works

• Audio and video frames are encrypted in your browser (AES-256-GCM) before transmission
• The meeting key is generated on the host's device and delivered to each participant's device individually, sealed so Webcast's servers cannot read it
• The key is rotated when someone leaves, so a former participant cannot decrypt anything said after they left
• Chat messages in end-to-end encrypted meetings are also encrypted in the browser before they are sent
• Browsers that cannot encrypt video frames are refused entry to meetings that require end-to-end encryption — they never join as a weak link
• Recording, broadcasting, and AI features are unavailable while end-to-end encryption is active, because they would require server access to your media

Data Storage & Retention

• Meeting content (chat messages, attachments, transcripts, summaries, notes) — kept for about 30 minutes after the meeting ends so the host can save files, then deleted from Webcast's servers. An independent backstop removes anything left over within 24½ hours, even after a crash.
• Recordings and saved artifacts — stored on your device, in the folder you choose; Webcast does not keep server-side copies beyond the retention window above
• Meeting history — OFF by default; when enabled, only timestamps and duration are recorded (encrypted)
• Emails and names — encrypted at rest with AES-256-GCM
• Passwords — hashed with bcrypt (irreversible)
• Meeting titles — encrypted at rest
• Blocked emails — stored encrypted, with a keyed hash for lookup
• IP addresses — captured only for blocked-user enforcement
• AI processing — routed through a zero-data-retention gateway wherever possible; AI providers do not store your content or train on it

Meeting Security Features

• Meeting passwords — all meetings are password-protected
• URL tokens — cryptographically random, not guessable
• Waiting rooms — screen participants before entry
• Meeting lock — prevent new joins during a meeting
• Blocked users — email + IP based blocking
• URL refresh — invalidate old links

18 Troubleshooting

Camera/Microphone Not Working

1. Check browser permissions — ensure the site is allowed camera/microphone access
2. Check that no other application is using your camera
3. Try a different browser (Chrome or Edge recommended)
4. Restart your browser

Cannot Join a Meeting

• "Meeting not found" — the URL may have been regenerated. Ask host for the new URL.
• "Access Denied" — you are on the host's blocked list. Contact the host to be unblocked.
• "Password Required" — enter the 6-digit meeting password.
• "Meeting Locked" — the host has locked the meeting. Wait or contact the host.
• "Invalid or expired token" — sign out and sign back in.

Video/Audio Quality

• Ensure a stable internet connection (1.5+ Mbps up/down recommended)
• Close bandwidth-heavy applications
• Use a wired connection when possible
• Reduce camera resolution in browser settings

Corporate Firewall Issues

• WebRTC requires UDP traffic on ports 50000-60000
• STUN/TURN uses ports 3478 and 5349
• HTTPS (443) must be allowed
• WebSocket connections (WSS) must be allowed

Contact your network administrator if you experience persistent connection issues.

19 YouTube Live Streaming

Webcast.chat allows hosts to broadcast their meeting to YouTube Live in real time. There are two methods to set up a livestream: connecting your YouTube account via Google OAuth2 (recommended), or manually entering an RTMP URL and stream key.

Starting a Livestream

1. During a meeting, click the Livestream icon (📡) in the top bar
2. The "Start Livestream" dialog opens
3. Select the Platform from the dropdown: YouTube Live or Custom RTMP
4. Choose a Quality setting (720p, 1080p Recommended, or 1440p)

Method 1: Connect YouTube Account (OAuth2)

This is the recommended method. It connects your Google/YouTube account directly so that Webcast sets up the livestream automatically.

1. Select "YouTube Live" as the platform
2. Click the red "Connect YouTube Account" button
3. A Google sign-in window opens — sign in with the Google account linked to your YouTube channel
4. Grant Webcast permission to manage your YouTube livestreams
5. Once connected, your stream key is configured automatically
6. Click "Go Live" to start broadcasting

Method 2: Custom RTMP (Manual Stream Key)

Use this method if you prefer to enter the stream key manually, or if you want to stream to a platform other than YouTube (e.g., Facebook Live, Twitch, or any RTMP-compatible service).

1. Select "Custom RTMP" as the platform
2. Enter the RTMP URL — for YouTube, this is typically rtmp://a.rtmp.youtube.com/live2
3. Enter the Stream Key — find this in YouTube Studio → Go Live → Stream Settings → Stream key
4. Click "Go Live" to start broadcasting

Finding Your YouTube Stream Key

1. Go to YouTube Studio
2. Click "Go Live" or "Manage" under Live streaming
3. In the "Stream" tab, find the "Stream key" section
4. Click "Copy" to copy the stream key
5. The Stream URL is shown above it (usually rtmp://a.rtmp.youtube.com/live2)

During the Livestream

• All meeting participants see a red "LIVE" indicator confirming the meeting is being broadcast
• The host can stop the livestream at any time by clicking the Livestream button again
• Audio, video, and screen shares from the meeting are included in the broadcast
• Viewers on YouTube can watch with the typical YouTube Live delay (5–30 seconds)

Requirements

20 Expert Assistant

The Expert Assistant is an in-meeting AI specialist that researches questions, analyzes the live discussion, and produces polished deliverables on demand. It answers with well-structured, source-aware responses and can speak its replies aloud, post them to the meeting chat, or present them on the shared screen. The Expert Assistant is a Pro feature and must be enabled by your account administrator before it can be invited into a meeting.

What the Expert Assistant Can Do

• Answer questions — responds to spoken or typed questions with concise, well-organized answers that draw on the meeting context and broad subject knowledge.
• Research and summarize — investigates a topic and returns a structured briefing with the key points highlighted.
• Review attachments — reads documents you attach in the chat panel (for example notes, reports, or spreadsheets) and summarizes, compares, or answers questions about their content.
• Draft documents — produces formatted write-ups, outlines, plans, and meeting deliverables that are attached to the chat as downloadable files.
• Generate code — writes, fixes, or refactors scripts and source code and delivers it as a downloadable file.
• Build 3D models and visualizations — creates interactive 3D scenes and objects, packaged and attached to the chat for you to download and open in a browser.
• Follow the meeting agenda — uses the host-authored agenda as additional context so its answers stay on topic.
• Work across languages — understands and replies in the languages supported by Webcast.chat.

Availability and Setup

1. An administrator enables the Expert Assistant for your organization.
2. The host or a co-host invites the Expert Assistant into the meeting (see below). Once invited, it appears as a branded tile with concentric rings that animate to show its current state (listening, thinking, responding, or paused).
3. For voice requests, open the AI Panel, choose your transcription language, and turn on listen / transcription mode so that speech is captured.

Inviting the Expert Assistant

The host or a co-host invites the Expert from the Expert Assistant button in the meeting controls. You can choose how proactive it should be:

From the same menu, the host or co-host can dismiss the Expert Assistant at any time, and decide who may invoke it from chat — everyone, or hosts and co-hosts only.

Calling the Expert by Chat

In the meeting chat panel, start your message by addressing the Expert, then type your request. Any of the following address prefixes work, and they are not case-sensitive:

• @Webcast  |  @expert  |  @assistant  |  @ai  |  @agent
• You can also begin a message with the bare word "Webcast" followed by your request.

Examples:

• @expert summarize the document I just attached
• @Webcast what are the key risks in this proposal?
• @assistant draft a one-page project plan from today's discussion

Shared vs. Private Conversations

• Shared (meeting) thread — the Expert's answer is posted to the meeting chat so everyone can see it. Each answer includes Copy and Download actions, and any generated files appear as downloadable attachments.
• Private Expert chat — when enabled by the host, each participant gets a private one-to-one thread. Ask questions privately with "Ask the Expert privately…"; only you and the Expert can see the exchange. Use Publish to meeting to share a particular answer with everyone.

Calling the Expert by Voice

With listen mode on, simply speak the assistant's name at the start of your sentence, then ask your question. Recognized spoken wake words include:

• "Webcast …"
• "Expert Assistant …"
• "Agent …"  |  "Hey agent …"

For example, say: "Webcast, what are the main takeaways so far?" or "Expert Assistant, draft action items from this meeting."

• If you say only the wake word, the Expert arms itself and waits a moment for your question.
• After it answers, you can ask a follow-up right away without repeating the wake word.
• A brief confirmation appears ("Expert heard …") so you can see that your request was captured before it begins researching.

How the Expert Replies

You control how spoken answers are delivered:

• Choose the Expert's voice — the host or co-host can pick the text-to-speech voice from the Expert menu (this mirrors the AI Panel voice picker).
• Mute the Expert for yourself — any participant can locally mute the Expert's voice without affecting others.

Attachments and Deliverables

• Attach a document and ask about it — drop a readable file into the chat (for example .txt, .md, .csv, .pdf, .docx, .xlsx, .html, .json), then ask the Expert to review, summarize, or compare it.
• Receive downloadable results — documents, code, and 3D models generated by the Expert are attached to the chat as files you can download. 3D scenes are packaged so they open directly in a web browser.
• Privacy of attachments — files shared in a meeting are kept isolated to that meeting and are automatically removed after the call ends. Before a meeting is closed, the host and co-hosts are reminded to download any chat attachments they wish to keep.

Presenting Results on the Shared Screen

The host or co-host can place the Expert's latest answer on screen for everyone to read together:

• Present last result — shows the most recent answer on the shared display.
• Next page / Previous page — step through a long answer page by page.
• Stop presenting — return to the normal meeting view.

Example Prompts

21 Calling, Messaging, and Emergency Services

Webcast lets you call and message other Webcast users directly, without scheduling a meeting. You can reach someone by their account email address, or by a phone number they have registered and verified with Webcast. Answering a call opens either an audio-only or an audio and video conversation, whichever the caller chose.

What Webcast calling is, and is not

• Calls and messages travel between Webcast accounts over the internet. Both sides need a Webcast account and an internet connection.
• A registered phone number is used only to help other Webcast users find your account. It does not turn Webcast into a telephone service: you cannot dial an ordinary telephone number, and people cannot call you from an ordinary telephone.
• Because Webcast is not connected to the public telephone network, there are no per-minute charges, no call detail records held by a carrier, and no caller location data.

22 Accessibility

Webcast is designed to be usable with assistive technology. If something is not working for you, we want to hear about it — see the contact address at the end of this section.

Screen readers

Meeting events are announced automatically as they happen: someone joining or leaving, a raised hand, a new chat message, screen sharing starting or stopping, a lost connection, and the start or end of recording. Recording announcements interrupt whatever your screen reader is currently reading, because you are entitled to know before you speak again.

Buttons and controls

Every control in the meeting bar has a spoken name, and buttons that switch something on or off report their state — your screen reader will say whether the microphone or camera button is currently pressed, rather than leaving you to guess from an icon.

Using Webcast by keyboard

Everything in a meeting can be reached with the Tab key, and the control you have focused is outlined so you can see where you are. Because a large meeting has many participant tiles to travel through, the first item you reach after entering a meeting is a "Skip to meeting controls" link: activate it to jump straight to the microphone, camera, and leave buttons.

Captions and transcripts

Live captions can be turned on during a meeting, and a written transcript can be produced afterwards. Captions can also be shown translated into another language.

Accessibility support

For accessibility questions, to report a barrier, or to request information in an alternative format, contact us at the address below. We aim to respond within five business days.

accessibility@webcast.chat