Using MAIA
Dispatch
To dispatch an objective, you hand it to MAIA's agent and answer what it asks along the way. The agent shows what it is doing, and it stops for you only when a choice would change the result, spend credits you have not agreed to, or remove data.
Start a run#
In the web app:
- Choose a county. A new project asks for it first.
- Write the objective in the box. See Define.
- Press Find. MAIA names its first action within a few seconds.
In an existing project, write in the project's chat instead.
To start from a skill, type / in the chat and choose it. MAIA runs the saved method on this project.
| Where | A new project | An existing project |
|---|---|---|
| The web app | A new projectChoose a county, write the objective, press Find | An existing projectWrite in the project's chat |
| MCP | A new projectcreate_project with the county and the request | An existing projectsend_message with the project and the message |
Over MCP both calls return at once with a run id, and get_run reports on the run. Pass a skill's name as skill to start from one. See Runs and approvals.
What MAIA shows while it works#
While MAIA works, the chat names each action as it takes it, such as searching the web or creating a layer. While the box is empty, the send button is a stop button, and a card appears whenever MAIA needs you. When a run follows a skill, MAIA shows the skill's plan and marks each phase as it finishes.
A run takes from under a minute to several minutes.
When MAIA stops for you#
MAIA asks before it acts in three cases only:
- Your answer would change what MAIA looks for, even in the first result.
- The next step would spend credits you have not agreed to.
- Whether to set rows aside is a judgment call.
Everything else it decides. A cutoff, a distance, or a category is a reversible choice, so MAIA picks a sensible default and tells you which one. You can change it afterward.
Questions#
A question arrives as a short list of options or as a yes or no. Pick one, and the run continues.
Approvals#
Some actions run only after you approve them. MAIA shows a card, and you choose Approve or Decline. Decline, and MAIA goes on without that step.
| Action | The card asks |
|---|---|
| Removing a layer | The card asksDelete layer? |
| Saving a method | The card asksSave skill? |
| Changing or removing a saved method | The card asksUpdate skill? or Delete skill? |
| Changing a column that already holds answers | The card asksUpdate enrichment? |
| Researching more rows than your row limit | The card asksEnrich this column? The card names the column and the row count, and it says the run spends credits |
Note
Before a large run starts, MAIA checks your balance. A run the balance cannot cover is refused, and MAIA says how far short it is. From the table's Enrich menu, MAIA offers to run the rows you can afford instead. See Run an enrichment.
Over MCP the run reports needs_input, and your client answers with respond. See Runs and approvals.
Stop, queue, and leave#
| You want to | In the app | Over MCP |
|---|---|---|
| Stop a run | In the appThe send button is a stop button while the box is empty | Over MCPstop_run |
| Add a request mid-run | In the appType it. It waits in a queue until the run ends. Send now stops the run and sends it | Over MCPWait for the run to end. A request sent during a run is refused |
| Leave | In the appClose the project. The run and its enrichments keep going, and the answer is in the chat when you return | Over MCPCall get_run later |
A stop is cooperative. MAIA keeps what it finished.
Limits#
- One run per project at a time. Several projects can run at once.
- A run has a time limit. Send a long job as several short requests.
Next: Review.