Every call arrives through an endpoint, and there are three kinds:
| Route | What it is | Set it up |
|---|---|---|
| Phone number | A real UK number callers dial | Connect a phone number |
| SIP registration | polite.ai as an extension on your own PBX or provider | SIP registrations |
| Browser | A call straight from the web page — no number involved | Test your agent |
Phone numbers
The classic route: buy a number on the Numbering screen or bring your own, then point it at a team. The Numbering table's Routed to column always shows which agent each number rings — click through to open that agent — and Call received flips to Yes once a real call has arrived.
SIP registrations
A registration has no phone number of its own — polite.ai signs in to your PBX or SIP provider as an extension, and whatever your system sends to that extension gets answered. In deployment screens a registration appears by its label or SIP username rather than a number. Use one when your calls already live on a phone system you're keeping.
The browser
Browser calls need no telephony at all: a temporary session is created on demand and removed when the call ends. It's how you test a team from the Builder or the agent drawer while you work — same agents, same tools, no number required.
Browser calls carry the caller ID WebRTC instead of a phone number, so an agent that
greets known callers by name knows it's talking to a browser session.
One endpoint, one team, the live version
Two rules keep routing predictable:
- One endpoint routes to one team at a time. A number or registration answers for exactly one team; a team can hold many endpoints.
- Real callers get the live version. Edits accumulate safely in a draft and only answer callers when you go live.
The one exception is deliberate: connect an endpoint while a draft is open and it answers the draft right away — handy for trying a new team on a real line — then stays connected when you go live. The Agents page tags these pills DRAFT so you always know.
Where the wiring lives
- In the Builder — the Connect inbound calls panel appears when the assistant offers to wire calls up: pick an unconnected number or registration, choose which voice member answers, done. See Meet the Builder.
- In the agent drawer — the Deploy tab lists where an agent is answering, lets you Undeploy, and its Deploy to form targets the browser, any owned number, or any SIP registration.
- On Numbering — the Routed to column shows today's wiring for every number at a glance.
However a call arrives, it's treated the same afterwards — recording, transcript and data feed all land in Calls. And for calls in the other direction, see Outbound calling.