Prompting Tips

Get the best results from Owl AI by following these tips.

Be Specific About Your Data

Reference layer names and column names explicitly. Instead of "show me the big cities," say "filter the us_cities layer to show features where population is greater than 500,000."

Specify the Output Format

Tell Owl AI what you want as a result: a new layer on the map, a table, a chart, or a number. For example: "Calculate the total area of parks in km² and show it as a number" versus "Highlight all parks on the map."

Use Spatial Language

Owl AI understands spatial terms like "within," "near," "adjacent to," "overlapping," "inside," and distance units (meters, kilometers, miles, feet). Use them: "Show all restaurants within 1 km of subway stations."

Iterate

If the first result isn't right, refine your prompt. Owl AI maintains conversation context within a session, so you can say "only include results from the downtown district" to narrow down a previous query.

Complex Workflows

Chain multiple steps: "First, buffer all highways by 100 meters. Then, find all residential parcels that intersect those buffers. Finally, calculate the total assessed value of those parcels."

What to Avoid

• Ambiguous pronouns without context ("Show me those things")
• Requests without spatial context ("What's the best location?" — best for what?)
• Expecting Owl AI to know external data it doesn't have access to