How to use AI in Confluence: A practical step-by-step guide

Confluence is the go-to knowledge base for countless teams. As it grows, it becomes a powerful shared brain for your organization. You know the information you need is in there, and with the right tools, finding it is easier than ever.

This is where AI is making a real difference. By using AI in your Confluence space, you can turn your library of documents into an interactive resource that helps your team find answers and get work done faster.

This guide will walk you through exactly how to use AI in Confluence, starting with the features Atlassian has built right in. Then, we’ll look at how you can extend these capabilities to really tap into what your company’s collective knowledge can do.

Prerequisites for using AI in Confluence

Before we dive in, let's make sure you have the basics covered. To use the built-in AI features in Confluence, you’ll need a few things:

• A Confluence Cloud instance.

• A Premium or Enterprise plan. Atlassian Intelligence is a specialized feature set designed for these higher-tier plans to support growing teams.

• Organization admin permissions. Someone with these permissions will need to be the one to activate Atlassian Intelligence for your workspace.

How to use Confluence's native AI: A step-by-step guide

Atlassian Intelligence has some useful tools baked in that can help with daily tasks. Here’s how you can get them going in 2026.

Step 1: Turn on Atlassian Intelligence

First thing's first: an organization admin has to activate the feature.

1. Head over to admin.atlassian.com.

2. Find Settings > Atlassian Intelligence in the sidebar.

3. Read through the terms, and then choose the products (make sure Confluence is on the list) where you want to use the AI features.

Step 2: Generate and tweak content in the editor

Once it's enabled, you can use AI directly inside the Confluence editor. It’s a great way to jumpstart your writing process.

• To create new content: Just type /ai on a new line and give it a prompt. You could try something like, “Brainstorm a few blog post ideas about team productivity” or “Write a project plan for the new website launch.” The AI will generate a draft that you can then refine and make your own.

• To edit existing text: Highlight a chunk of text, and you’ll see an AI icon pop up. Clicking it gives you options like “Improve writing,” “Change tone,” or “Fix spelling & grammar.”

Step 3: Summarize pages to get up to speed

Confluence is great for hosting detailed documentation. If you need a quick overview of a long document, the AI can help.

• Summarize a page: On any published Confluence page, click the Summarize button at the top. Atlassian Intelligence will generate a concise summary of the page’s content.

• Recap comments: If a page has a long comment thread, scroll down and click Comments recap. It'll give you a summary of the discussion, helping you catch up on the latest decisions.

Step 4: Ask questions and get real answers

Instead of just searching for keywords, you can ask questions in plain English. Just type your question into the main search bar, like “What’s our remote work policy?”, and select Ask AI. It will pull an answer directly from the content in your Confluence spaces and provide links to the source pages.

Considerations for expanding your AI strategy

While Atlassian Intelligence is an excellent starting point, many teams look for ways to extend these features as their needs evolve.

Connecting attachments and other apps

Atlassian Intelligence is highly effective at searching page content. If your team also relies heavily on info stored in PDFs, Word docs, or presentations, you might want to look at tools that can read attachments.

Additionally, while Atlassian Intelligence is optimized for the Atlassian ecosystem, many teams also store critical information in Google Docs, Notion, Slack, or Microsoft Teams.

This is where eesel AI serves as a perfect companion. It is designed to bridge these gaps. By using its Confluence integration, eesel AI works alongside your Confluence pages and also connects to over 100 other apps, creating one unified source of truth for your whole team.

Options for every plan level

As mentioned, native AI features are part of the Premium and Enterprise plans. These plans offer incredible value for larger organizations. For smaller teams or those on Standard plans looking for a specific AI-first approach, eesel AI offers a flexible and transparent pricing model that can fit any budget.

Deep customization and control

The built-in AI provides a streamlined and user-friendly experience. If your team requires advanced customization, such as defining a specific AI personality or building complex automations with live data, eesel AI is an excellent additional tool to consider.

With eesel AI, you have a workflow engine that allows for precise control. You can define the AI's exact tone and use Custom Actions to teach it to look up live information from any system with an API, ensuring your team has access to real-time data.

A complementary approach: Using eesel AI with Confluence

You can use a dedicated platform like eesel AI to enhance Confluence, making it the central hub for your company's knowledge. Here’s how you can get started.

Step 1: Connect all your knowledge in minutes

The setup is quick and user-friendly. You can connect your favorite tools with just a few clicks.

1. Sign up for eesel AI.

2. From the dashboard, click "Add Source."

3. Connect Confluence, Google Docs, Notion, and your help desk. The process is self-serve and very efficient.

Step 2: Put the AI where your team already works

The best tools are accessible. With eesel AI, you can deploy a Q&A assistant right inside Slack or Microsoft Teams that answers questions using information from Confluence and your other connected apps.

When a teammate asks a question in Slack, the bot can find the answer from Confluence instantly. This creates a seamless experience where the AI searches everywhere - including Confluence pages and attached PDFs - to deliver a complete answer right where your team is talking.

Tips for success with AI in Confluence

Regardless of your chosen setup, these habits will help you get the best results in 2026.

• Keep your documentation updated. AI works best with high-quality information. Use Confluence’s robust organizational features to archive old pages and maintain clear headings.

• Encourage natural language questions. Guide your team to ask questions as they would to a colleague, allowing the AI to provide more conversational and helpful answers.

• Start with specific use cases. Focus on areas where AI can provide immediate value, such as internal FAQs or finding project specifications.

• Utilize testing features. Before rolling out new AI tools broadly, use testing environments. eesel AI includes a simulation mode that lets you test responses on existing data to ensure accuracy and build confidence.

From a wiki to a comprehensive company brain

You now know how to use AI in Confluence to streamline your workflow, find info, and create great content. Atlassian Intelligence provides a mature and reliable foundation for any organization.

To further enhance your setup, a platform like eesel AI can help you connect your entire knowledge ecosystem. By combining Confluence’s industry-leading platform with specialized AI tools, you give your team the accurate answers they need to do their best work.

This video provides a great introduction to Atlassian Intelligence and how to use its AI features in Confluence Cloud.

Ready to see what your Confluence knowledge can really do? Try eesel AI for free and connect all your knowledge sources in minutes.

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