# AI Summary and prompt columns

> An AI Summary column writes a short summary of every row. A prompt column answers a question you write in plain English for every row. Both are Spiich-generated and neither is sent to your CRM.

- Source: https://spiich.ai/help/your-data/ai-and-prompt-columns
- Section: Your data in Spiich
- Who can do this: Everyone
- Time: 2 minutes to set up
- Last updated: 2026-08-24

## Before you start

- A saved table you can manage: your own personal table, or any table if you are an admin.
- Credits available on your workspace. You can see the balance in `Settings > Billing`.

Most columns on a [table](/help/your-data/tables-and-views) come from your CRM. Two do not. Both live in the **Spiich** group of the column picker, and neither is ever written back to your CRM.

## The two column types

| Column | What it does | How many |
| --- | --- | --- |
| AI Summary | Writes a short Spiich-authored summary of the record | One per table, and one per card |
| Prompt column | Answers a question you write, once per row | As many as you like |

An AI Summary is generated on demand for the rows on screen, cached in your browser for 24 hours, and saved back onto the record in Spiich.

A prompt column is a question in plain English. Spiich answers it for each row using that record's fields, its linked records and its notes, then stores the answer, so a row is only ever generated once. Cells fill in as rows scroll into view.

## Add a prompt column

1. **Open the table and click Edit**
   If there is no Edit button you cannot manage that table. Duplicate it for your own copy, or ask an admin.

2. **Add column, then New prompt column**
   **Add column** is in the Columns section. **New prompt column** sits under the **Spiich** group at the top of the picker.

3. **Name the column**
   Up to 80 characters. Pick something you would recognize as a column header, for example `Industry`.

4. **Write the question**
   Up to 2000 characters, in the **Question to answer for each row** box. Ask for one short value per row.

5. **Read the rate, then click Create column**
   The dialog states what each filled-in row costs before you commit. Creating the column itself is free.

6. **Save the table, then scroll**
   Click **Save** in the table editor and scroll. Cells fill in as rows come into view, up to 25 at a time.

## Writing a question that works

The column is a spreadsheet cell, not a chat reply. Aim for one short value per row.

_A good prompt column question:_
```
What industry is this company in? Answer with two or three words.
```

- **Ask for a value, not a paragraph.** "What industry is this company in?" gives you something you can sort and filter. "Tell me about this company" gives you an essay in a narrow column.
- **Ask for something the record can answer.** Spiich uses the record's own fields, its linked records and its notes. A question needing information nowhere in your CRM comes back blank.
- **Blank is a real answer.** Rows Spiich cannot answer are left empty, are never charged, and are not retried automatically.

## Refreshing answers

Answers are deliberately sticky. A cell that already holds a value is never regenerated on its own, and editing a column's question does **not** re-answer or re-charge the rows already filled in. The Edit prompt column dialog tells you how many rows still answer the earlier question.

To refresh them, select the rows and use **Regenerate**:

1. **Edit the question**
   In the table editor, click the pencil beside the prompt column, change the name or the question, and click **Save changes**. Nothing is charged at this point.

2. **Select the rows you want re-answered**
   Back on the table, tick the row checkboxes, or use the header checkbox to take every loaded row.

3. **Click Regenerate in the bulk bar**
   Pick the column. The menu states the price for that selection before you commit, and warns you when your selection is bigger than the rows currently loaded.

4. **Watch the run finish**
   The bar reports how many rows were regenerated, how many failed and how many credits were charged. **Retry** re-sends only the rows that did not land, so nothing is paid for twice.

> **Careful:** Deleting a prompt column permanently deletes every answer it generated along with its history. Removing the column from a table instead leaves the column and its values intact.

Only the member who created a prompt column, or a workspace admin, can rename it, rewrite its question or delete it. Everyone else opens the same dialog through the eye icon and sees the question read-only.

## Limits

- Prompt columns are metered in credits, charged for each row Spiich actually fills in. Rows left blank cost nothing, and creating the column costs nothing. For what a credit costs, [talk to us](/contact).
- Generation is capped at 25 rows per request. Answers are cached in your browser for 7 days and served from there on reload without recharging.
- Editing a question never refreshes existing answers. Staleness shows only as a count inside the Edit prompt column dialog; there is no per-cell marker in the table.
- The chat assistant cannot read a prompt column's answers. The column filters and sorts correctly server-side, but its value is stripped from the records the assistant reads, so it may report the field as empty even when the table plainly shows a value.
- Prompt column names are not checked for collisions. Two columns on the same object can share a name, and one can be given the same name as a real CRM field, with nothing in the picker to tell them apart.
- A prompt column belongs to the table it was created on. It is not offered on other tables, and never on cards.
- Prompt column answers and AI Summaries are Spiich-generated. They are never written to your CRM, and a [CRM sync](/help/your-data/crm-sync-rules) never overwrites them.

## If something goes wrong

**Cells show a muted "Paused" instead of filling in.** The workspace has hit its credit limit or a spending cap. Cells that already hold values keep showing them. Top up in [`Settings > Billing`](https://app.spiich.ai/settings/billing) or raise the cap, then reload the table. Nothing was recorded as answered while paused, so generation resumes with no lost or double charges.

**A column answers the old question.** Editing a question deliberately does not re-answer existing rows. Open **Edit**, click the pencil on that column to see how many rows are still on the earlier question, then select those rows and use **Regenerate**.

**The assistant says the column is empty but the table shows a value.** Expected. Prompt-column values are not readable by the assistant. Read them from the table or the card.

**Every cell shows a dash in a second browser tab.** Both tabs asked for the same cells while generation was in flight. Reload the page. No data was lost and nothing was charged twice.

**Regenerate ends with "Out of credits after N rows".** The balance ran out mid-run. Rows already re-answered were charged, the rest kept their previous values. Top up, then use **Retry** in the bar.

## Frequently asked questions

### Do prompt column answers get written into my CRM?

No. Prompt column answers and AI Summaries are Spiich-generated values. They are never pushed to your CRM, and they are the only values on a record that a CRM sync leaves untouched. Your CRM stays the source of truth for CRM fields.

### Can I filter and sort by a prompt column?

Yes. Prompt columns filter and sort server-side like any other column. The one thing they cannot do is be read by the chat assistant, which drops them from the record it reads.

### What happens if I change the question on a column my colleague created?

You cannot, unless you are a workspace admin. Only the member who created a prompt column or an admin can rename it, rewrite its question or delete it. Everybody else gets a read-only view of the question through the eye icon.

### Why did some rows come back blank?

Spiich leaves a row empty when the record does not carry enough context to answer the question from its own fields, linked records and notes. Blank rows are never charged and are not retried automatically. Rewording the question to ask for something the record actually holds usually fixes it.

## Related

- [Tables and views](https://spiich.ai/help/your-data/tables-and-views)
- [Act on many records at once](https://spiich.ai/help/your-data/bulk-actions)
- [Credits and usage](https://spiich.ai/help/workspace/credits-and-usage)
- [Record pages](https://spiich.ai/help/your-data/record-pages)
- [Talk to us about pricing](https://spiich.ai/contact)
- [Prospecting with Spiich](https://spiich.ai/product/prospecting)