The Call Duration field defines the maximum length (in seconds or minutes) that your AI agent will stay connected to a call before it automatically ends the call. This helps you manage system resources, prevent hanging calls, and mitigate waste from unwanted or automated calls.
Why Set a Call Duration Limit?
Here are the main reasons to configure it:
- Block spam or robocalls
Unwanted callers or automated systems may stay on the line without meaningful interaction. A time limit ensures your system doesn’t get stuck in these calls indefinitely. - Resource control
Voice systems (STT, LLM, TTS, telephony) incur cost and compute usage per minute. A cap prevents runaway usage on low-quality or silent calls. - Fail-safe for non-responsive scenario
If your agent or the caller becomes silent (e.g. network issue, agent stalling), the call will automatically terminate rather than hanging forever. - Better user experience
For legitimate callers, long silence is confusing. A cap helps the system recover or reset, possibly triggering a fallback message or retry logic. - Logging and analytics consistency
You get cleaner metrics (average call durations, dropouts) when you prevent extreme outliers.
How to Choose a Duration Value
Here are guidelines for picking a good limit:
| Use Case | Suggested Duration | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| General customer support calls | 3–5 minutes (180–300 seconds) | Enough for most conversational flows |
| Appointment scheduling or simple tasks | 2–4 minutes | Agents often finish quickly |
| Long form interaction (e.g. surveys, in-depth support) | 5–10 minutes | Only if your prompt logic supports long conversations |
| Strict anti-spam or high call volume contexts | 1–2 minutes | Catch obviously invalid calls early |
Example Scenarios & Best Practices
- Silent Call / Robocall
A caller who does not speak at all. After e.g. 60 seconds, the call ends to conserve resources. - Trickle conversation, no resolution
The caller says something unclear, the agent tries to clarify, but nothing gets resolved. If no resolution in e.g. 180 seconds, the agent can say “I’m sorry, I can’t continue” and hang up. - Valid conversation
The caller and agent complete the workflow (e.g. booking an appointment) in under the duration — the call ends normally when the script finishes.
Behavior After Time Expires
When a call reaches the configured duration:
- The AI agent can speak a closure message (if defined) — e.g. “I’m wrapping up now. If you need anything else, please call back or we’ll connect you to a human.”
- The system terminates the call (hang up).
- Logs are captured with duration, transcript (if any), and status (timed out).
- Optionally, trigger a fallback or alert (e.g. notify support that the call was cut short).
Tips & Recommendations
- Always include a closure message so callers aren’t cut off unexpectedly.
- For high-risk spam environments, start with a short duration (60–120 s) and monitor logs.
- If you see many valid calls being terminated, raise the limit gradually.
- Monitor average call durations and use them as a guide.
- Combine duration limits with silence detection logic (if possible) — e.g. end if > 30 s of silence.