# Keep a running summary with a desk agent > Wire your notes into a Desk agent with the Summarise job, and it keeps a short, current summary in a note beside them as the notes change. Source: https://plexiidesk.com/help/automate-running-summary Section: Widgets > Build and automate Plans: All plans Updated: 2026-10-15 This recipe sets up a Desk agent that keeps a short summary of your notes up to date. Each time you change one of the notes, the agent reads them all again and rewrites the summary in a note of its own. The summary leads with the three most important points. It suits anything that grows over time: meeting notes, research jottings, a project log or the notes from a run of interviews. ## Before you start - This works on every plan. - **AI must be set up.** When you are signed in, the agent runs on your PlexiDesk credits. You can also use your own Anthropic key. See [AI credits and where your AI runs](https://plexiidesk.com/help/ai-credits). - Have the notes you want summarised on one desk. Sticky, Note, Markdown and Page widgets all work. To include notes from another desk, add a [Portal widget](https://plexiidesk.com/help/widget-portal) for that desk and wire the Portal in instead. ## Set it up ### 1. Add the agent 1. Open the desk with your notes. 2. Click **Add widget** in the centre of the header, and in the **Build & automate** column click **Desk agent**. Or, to save a step, hold `Shift` and click the title bar of each note, then right-click one of their title bars and choose **Organise** > **Automate 3 with an agent** (the number matches your selection). The agent appears beside them with the notes already wired in. Skip to step 3. ### 2. Wire in the notes For each note: 1. Point at the note and click the link button in its title bar. 2. Click the agent. 3. In **How should this connect?**, choose **Feed in as context**. The line under the agent's instruction box counts the notes and names the first three, for example **2 inputs: Monday notes, Tuesday notes**. ### 3. Choose the Summarise job Under **Quick jobs**, click **Summarise**. This sets up the agent in one click: - **The instruction:** *Keep a running summary of everything wired into me. Update it whenever the wired content changes. Lead with the three most important points.* - **The role:** **Copywriter**, for clear, plain writing. - **When it runs:** **On change**. You can edit the instruction afterwards. For example, add *Keep it under 150 words* or *End with a list of open questions*. ### 4. Give the summary a home 1. Open the **Write to** list and choose **Add a Note…**. A new note appears to the right of the agent, named after it, such as **Desk agent output**. 2. Click the **append** button beside the list so it says **replace**. Each run then swaps in the new summary, instead of adding it below the old one. 3. Tick **Write without asking me first**, if you want each summary written straight in. Leave it unticked to review each one as a card first. ### 5. Run it once Click **Run**. The widget shows **Thinking…**, then the summary. It is written into the note, or waits as a card under **Proposed changes** if you left **Write without asking me first** unticked. Click the card to write it in. ## What happens next Edit any of the wired notes. A moment after you stop typing, the agent runs again and the summary is rewritten. A burst of edits makes one run, not many. - **Active** must stay ticked for the agent to run on its own. Untick it to pause the summary. **Run** still works whenever you click it. - The footer shows when the agent last ran, such as **ran 5m ago**. - The agent and its runs are also listed in the Automations panel. See [See what runs on its own on a desk](https://plexiidesk.com/help/canvas-automations). ## Variations - **Keep a log instead of one summary.** Leave the destination on **append**, and each run adds a new summary below the last, so you can see how things changed. - **Summarise into a Page.** Choose **Add a Page to this desk…** in **Write to**. A Page shows the summary with real headings and bullet lists. - **Summarise on a timer.** Choose **Interval** instead of **On change** and set the number of seconds beside **Active**. The shortest interval is 30 seconds. ## Tips - **Each note is read up to its first 2,000 characters.** For a long document, wire in the part that matters, or split it into several notes. - **Wire in only what belongs in the summary.** Everything wired in is read on every run. - **Name the notes clearly.** The agent sees each note's name, which helps it keep the points apart. ## Common questions **The summary does not update when I edit a note.** Check that **Active** is ticked, that **On change** is chosen, and that the inputs line names the note you edited. **A card appears each time instead of the note changing.** **Write without asking me first** is unticked. Tick it to write each summary straight into the note. **The summary keeps getting longer.** The destination is set to **append**. Click it so it says **replace**. **The agent says it described its work instead of writing it.** Nothing was saved. Change the instruction to ask for the summary itself, for example *Write the summary*, and run it again. ## Related tasks - [Desk agent widget](https://plexiidesk.com/help/widget-desk-agent) - [Link widgets and set up wires](https://plexiidesk.com/help/canvas-link-widgets) - [See what runs on its own on a desk](https://plexiidesk.com/help/canvas-automations) - [Send desk updates to other services and receive events back](https://plexiidesk.com/help/automate-connect-other-apps) - [Build & automate widgets](https://plexiidesk.com/help/widgets-build-and-automate)