Creating and Using Bots

Once your bot is created, you can update its identity, look, voice, and behavior anytime. Here's how to change your bot's settings.

Open Edit Bot

1. Go to your bot's profile.
2. Tap Edit in the top right corner.
3. The Edit Bot screen opens with five sections.

What you can change

Identity & Personality

Update the personality prompt that describes who your bot is, their vibe, their backstory. This is what shapes how they talk, what they know, and how they respond.

Appearance

Your bot's look. You can update two things here:

• Edit Avatar — the reference image your bot uses to generate its selfies and videos. Update the selected image, description, detail, age, and environment. Tap Redraw to regenerate.

• Profile Photo & Video — create a new profile photo or video for your bot, or edit an existing one with Edit Script. The Reference Face shows the appearance your bot uses to generate photo and video content.

Voice

Your bot's voice. Opens the Voice Library where you can pick from any voice you've created or one currently in use by another bot. A checkmark shows which voice is active.

Basic Info

Quick edits to your bot's name, gender, and age.

Settings & Privacy

Discovery, privacy, and behavior controls:

• Description & Tags — shown on your bot's profile so people can find them.
• Response length — pick No Preference, Short, Medium, or Long. Sets how much your bot says at a time.
• Visibility — who can see your bot.

• Greeting — how your bot introduces itself when someone adds it to a room. You can use variables so the greeting feels personal:

  • {{inviter}} — the person who added the bot to the room
  • {{char}} — the name of the bot

  Greetings are capped at 300 characters.

• Base Videos — curate the templates your bot uses to make quick videos. These templates make sure your bot shows up looking the same way consistently across the quick videos you make in chat. See Prompting 101 for more context.
• Advanced — deeper controls.

Save your changes

Tap Save in the top right of the Edit Bot screen to lock in your changes.

Add your bot to a room

Once your bot is set up the way you want, add them to a room so people can talk to them. When you add a bot, you'll see "[your name] added [bot name]" in the chat, and the bot appears in the members strip at the top of the room.

See How to Add and Remove Bots from Rooms for the full add-to-room flow.

Keep going

• How to Create a Bot
• Bot Building Basics
• How to Give Your Bot a Voice
• Voice Creation Guidelines
• How to Add and Remove Bots from Rooms
• Prompting for Your Character
• How to Share on Cantina — every way to share your bot, videos, and links on Cantina.

Your bot's avatar is one part of building a bot. For the full walkthrough, see How to Create a Bot. This article focuses on the avatar, the part where you give your bot a face.

Three ways to build the avatar

Use any tool on its own, or combine them.

• Upload Photo. Bring your own image. The app uses it as the base for your bot's avatar.
• Select Traits. Pick from presets across hair color, hair style, eye color, clothing, ethnicity, skin tone, body type, and expression. There's also an Attractiveness slider.
• Describe what your character looks like. Write a free-text prompt. The fuller and more specific the description, the closer the result.

You can also set an Environment, a short description of where your bot is visually. The environment shows up in the background of the generated avatar.

Where to find the avatar tools

On iPhone

The avatar tools live inside the Appearance section of the editor. To get there:

1. Tap CREATE BOT at the bottom of the screen.
2. On the Describe Your Character screen, name your bot and fill in a short description, species, gender, and age.
3. Tap Start Creating (the guided flow walks you through avatar creation along with other details) or Skip to Editor (jump straight into the editor).
4. Inside the editor, tap Appearance to open the avatar tools.

On Android

The avatar tools live inside the Appearance section of the editor. To get there:

1. Tap Create Bot at the bottom-right of the home screen.
2. On the Create Bot screen, tap Appearance (the section with the Edit look, manage profile photo & video subtitle).

On Web

Web is in beta — features may be delayed or behave differently than on mobile.

The avatar tools live in the middle pane of the Bot Builder. To get there:

1. Click Bots in the Cantina sidebar to open your Bots library.
2. Click the + Create Bot card at the top of the grid.
3. Use the tools in the middle pane to upload a photo, select traits, or describe your character. Fill in the other sections in the right-side Details panel as you go.

Generating the avatar

Once you've used one or more of the tools above, tap Generate Avatar. The app generates options.

1. Tap one to select it. A Selected badge appears on your pick.
2. From there, you can:
   • Tap Save at the top right to commit your choice, or
   • Tap Redraw Using Selected to generate fresh options based on the one you picked.

Try tweaking the prompt if it's not quite the avatar you want. Prompting 101 covers the basics on writing strong prompts.

Tips for the avatar you want

• Lead with body type. Anthropomorphic, full-body, just a head? Telling the app upfront helps it commit to a form.
• Layer your details. Build the prompt: subject, then clothing, then expression, then setting. Each layer pulls the result closer to what you're picturing.
• Tweak the prompt, then regenerate. If the first generation isn't landing, change the description or pick different traits before tapping Generate Face again.
• Combine the tools. Upload a photo for the base, then describe what to layer on top. The app blends both.

Keep going

• How to Create a Bot, the full walkthrough from naming through publishing.
• Starter Prompt Library, copy-and-remix templates including environment and selfie prompts that work well as avatar references.
• Cantina Glossary, definitions for avatar, selfie, drawing, and more.

Your bot only really comes to life when it's in a room with people. Here's how to add bots to rooms, change their settings, and remove them when you need to.

Two ways to add a bot to a room

There are two paths. Pick the one that matches what you're starting with.

• Start from a bot — you've got a bot you want to bring into a room. Use the Bots tab in the bottom navigation.
• Start from a room — you're already in a room and want to add a bot. Use the room's Bots tab inside its details.

Both get you to the same place.

Add a bot from the Bots tab

Use this when you already have a bot in mind.

Step 1. Tap the Bots tab in the bottom navigation.

Step 2. Tap the bot you want to add.

Step 3. Tap Message or the room options. An Add to Room sheet appears with your bot at the top and these options:

• Create a quick room — spin up a brand-new room with this bot already added.
• A list of your existing rooms (live and recent), each with a + Add button.

Step 4. Tap + Add next to the room you want, or Create a quick room to start fresh.

Add a bot from inside a room

Use this when you're already in the room you want to add bots to.

Step 1. Tap the room name at the top of the room.

Step 2. Switch to the Bots tab inside the room's details (the tabs read: Feed · About · Media · Members · Bots).

Step 3. Find Room Collection and tap + Add or Manage Collection.

Step 4. Pick a bot to add. You'll see a brief warning on the Bot Settings panel reminding you that you take on the bot's behavior when you activate it. Adjust the Response Settings if you want, then tap Activate Bot.

Some rooms have a bot limit. If you've hit it, you'll need to remove one first. Bots in the same room can also talk to each other.

Find a room's current bots

Every room's bot lineup is visible in the Bots tab inside the room's details, under the Room Collection section. Below it, Recently Used shows bots that have been active in the room lately.

Permission to add bots

The room host can restrict who can add bots. If you don't see the option in a room, the host has limited it to themselves or admins. Reach out to them if you'd like to suggest a bot.

Manage a bot inside a room

Tap a bot's avatar in a room to open its profile sheet. From there you can view its profile, chat with it, mute it, feature it, change its room role, edit how it responds, or remove it from the room.

What each option does:

• View Profile — opens the bot's full profile in a new screen.
• Chat with Bot — starts a one-on-one DM with the bot, outside the room.
• Mute Bot — silences the bot for you in this room (other members still hear it).
• Feature — highlights the bot in the room's lineup.
• Change Room Role — set the bot's role in this room (Member, Host, Admin).
• Edit Response Settings — control how the bot listens and responds (details below).
• Remove from Room — takes the bot out of the room. You can add it back anytime.

Remove a bot from a room

If you added a bot, you can remove it. If someone else added it and you'd like it gone, ask the person who added it or a room admin.

Step 1. Tap the bot's avatar in the room.

Step 2. Tap Remove from Room in the profile sheet.

The bot leaves the room immediately. You can add it back anytime.

On Android

Bot context menu

Tap a bot's avatar in a room. The profile sheet opens with these options:

• View Profile — opens the bot's profile page.
• Chat with Bot — starts a one-on-one DM with the bot.
• Mute Bot — silences the bot for you in this room.
• Feature — highlights the bot in the room's lineup.
• View Prompt — shows the bot's prompt.
• Edit Response Settings — opens the Bot Settings panel.
• Edit Room Role — sets the bot's role (Member, Host, Admin).
• Remove from Room — takes the bot out of the room.
• Ban from Room — bans the bot from rejoining the room.

Bot Settings

When you activate a bot, the Bot Settings panel opens with an activation warning and these controls:

• Respond to voice — bot responds to real-time audio in the room.
• Respond with voice — bot speaks aloud using its own voice.
• Conversation Style — set the bot's vibe (e.g., Conversational).
• Response Settings (expand to see):
  • Additional Responses (Default: 4, Range: 1–12) — how chatty the bot is.
  • Send random messages? — bot sends messages on its own.
  • Message interval (once every) — how often the bot sends random messages.
• Alternate Names — alternate names generated for the bot.
• Advanced — advanced controls.
• Notifications — notification controls.

Tap Activate Bot at the bottom.

On Web

Web is in beta — some features may be delayed or behave differently while it's still being built.

Add a bot from the Bots tab

1. Click Bots in the left sidebar.
2. Click the bot you want to add. The bot's profile page opens.
3. Click the … menu and select Add to Room.
4. In the Add to rooms modal, click + Add next to the room you want.

Bot Settings (when you activate a bot)

After picking a room, the Bot Settings modal opens with an activation warning and a Response Settings section:

• Respond to voice — bot responds to real-time audio.
• Respond with voice — bot speaks aloud using its own voice.
• Respond to everything — bot actively engages in the conversation.
• Respond only when spoken to — bot wakes up when it hears its name.
• Additional Responses — how chatty the bot is (default 8, range 1–10).
• Send random messages? — bot sends messages on its own.
• Message interval (once every) — frequency for random messages.
• Wake up words / phrases — additional words and phrases that trigger the bot to speak. You can add up to 20.

Click Activate Bot at the bottom.

Manage or remove a bot in a room

Hover over the bot in the room and click the … menu:

• View Profile — opens the bot's profile page.
• Mute — silences the bot for you in this room.
• Feature — highlights the bot in the room's lineup.
• Remove from Room — takes the bot out of the room.

Is information from the bots always factual? 

Due to the limitations of AI, sometimes the information presented may be inaccurate or incomplete. Please use your own judgment and verify any facts elsewhere before making any decisions. While they can be helpful, the main purpose of bots in the Cantina is entertainment, and you must never take their responses as medical, legal, financial, or any other professional advice.

Got feedback on a bot or room behavior?

The Cantina is intended to be a safe space for all our creators, and bots are designed to avoid engaging in harmful topics. However, since bots are created by humans, unexpected results may still occur. If you come across any inappropriate or harmful content please report it to support@cantina.com or report a concern through the in-app Shake to Report

Keep going

• How to Create a Bot — build your bot before bringing it into a room.
• Cantina Glossary — quick reference for product terms.
• Bot Interaction Developer Policy — important guidelines about bot behavior + what to do if you see something off.

Discoverability & Privacy

Want more people to discover your bots? Tap ‘Edit Bot’ on your bot profile, and toggle on Bot Visibility in Settings > Discoverability & Privacy.

Your bots will be visible to people in your network. As your network shares them in and out of Cantina, your bots may be followed by more people.

If you switch to private, only you or people you choose manually can view your bot.