# Ask Altertable

Ask Altertable is the conversational interface for querying and understanding data in Altertable. It can inspect your lakehouse, use semantic models and knowledge, run SQL, create analyses, and remember feedback from previous work.

Use Ask Altertable for exploratory questions, follow-up analysis, and operational investigations where the right query is not obvious yet. For repeatable reporting, save the result as an [insight](/docs/data-apps/insights.md).

In the Altertable app, open **Ask Agent** to start a conversation.

## What Ask Altertable can use

Ask Altertable works from the same governed context as the rest of Altertable:

- Catalog schemas and table metadata from your [lakehouse](/docs/lakehouse.md).
- [Semantic models](/docs/agents/knowledge/semantic-layer.md) that define business metrics and dimensions.
- [Knowledge entries](/docs/agents/knowledge/entries.md), connected repositories, and organization context.
- [Memories](/docs/agents/knowledge/memories.md) created from previous agent runs and feedback.
- Existing insights, dashboards, notifications, and task history.

## Good prompts

Start with the business question and include the time period, entity, or segment you care about:

```text
Which customers had the largest drop in weekly usage after the pricing change?
```

```text
Are checkout errors related to payment provider latency over the last 24 hours?
```

```text
How has trial-to-paid conversion changed over the last three months?
```

Ask Altertable may run SQL, inspect schemas, or ask clarifying questions before answering. When the answer depends on an assumption, ask it to show the query or explain the fields it used.

## Learn more

- **[SQL Explorer](/docs/lakehouse/query/sql-explorer.md)**: run and refine SQL directly.
- **[Semantic Layer](/docs/agents/knowledge/semantic-layer.md)**: define reusable business concepts.
- **[Memories](/docs/agents/knowledge/memories.md)**: review the context the Altertable Agent learns over time.
- **[MCP](/docs/agents/mcp.md)**: connect external AI clients to the same data and tools.