Ask the virtual help desk
Answers come only from approved content (the CUNY IT Help Q&A). Anything else becomes a ticket for a person, so the bot never invents an answer.
- "locked out of cunyfirst"
- "someone texted me asking for my MFA code"
- "what's the number for the help desk"
- "olvidé mi contraseña"
- "my Brightspace course is missing" (no approved answer, makes a ticket)
Text the help desk
Same assistant, shorter replies sized for a phone. Real texting needs carrier registration, so this is a simulation of what a student would see.
Carrier fees and number registration are extra and not priced, as the cost analysis notes. Reply STOP handling is shown below.
Call the help desk
The assistant answers out loud and listens. Speak (Chrome or Edge) or type what the caller says. If it can't help, it takes a message, which becomes a ticket.
The live transcript appears here.
Connect bills at least 10 seconds per contact, including hang-ups.
Repeat calls from the same number update one ticket instead of opening duplicates.
Voice message to ticket
A recorded message is transcribed, translated if needed, and turned into a ticket with the original kept for staff to check. Pick a sample or record your own.
Sample messages
Record your own
Ticket queue
Every hand-off from chat, text, phone, or voice message lands here. Each new ticket also emails the service desk (simulated SNS alert).
| ID | Channel | Summary | Lang | Status | Age |
|---|
Select a ticket to see the details, the original message, and actions.
Service status and campus contacts
The assistant draws on this same content. Announcements expire, so always check the CUNY IT Help announcements page for current status.
Recent announcements
Posted the week of Oct 5, 2026. These dates have passed and may already be removed from the portal.
Campus help desks
Examples from the CUNY IT Help directory. Confirm hours before relying on them.
| Campus | Phone |
|---|
Nobody from IT will ask for your password
CUNY and campus IT never ask for your password or MFA codes by phone, text, or email. Don't approve an MFA prompt you didn't start.
- At least 8 characters
- An uppercase letter, a lowercase letter, and a number or special character
- Can't contain your username
- Can't change again within 5 days; can't reuse your last 4
Cost meter
The left side adds up what this demo session would have cost on AWS. The right side projects a year using the analysis's assumptions; change them to test your own.
Session cost by service
Rates from the analysis (Sept 2026 AWS prices). The demo itself runs free.