As elitelite stated, it starts as an AI bot but if you wish to chat with a real person just type in "representative". The AI bot may challenge your desire to chat with a representative. Just follow the prompts and if nothing meets your goals just keep responding with "representative". When you see what elitelite said "You will know it's a real person if you see a name (e.g. "Jane D") attached to the conversation." you know you have a real person.

My experience with chat agent is just like phone agents - YMMV.

I had one case where everything was accomplished within 10 minutes while inflight - the response was super fast, and she even gave me multiple options for rebooking.

I had another case where they would read off the computer screen and did not process the additional information I gave them. I ended up calling in instead.

I have yet to have a chat agent actually accomplish what I needed/wanted. The worst are when they either ghost me after I've invested about 30-40 minutes or screw something up so badly I have to either call res and get a supervisor involved (downgrading me from PremPlus to Economy on a segment they shouldn't have even touched) or make an extra trip to visit the airport to have an agent fix it.

My result is that I don't trust them and I find the process to take more effort and be more cumbersome than just calling (or indeed talking to an airport agent when within 24 hours of travel)

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I was trying to use the help chat in the United app to get an agent to assign my brother a seat next to me in E+ on a different PNR for the same flight (the new PNR linking feature wasn't cooperating). The AI bot was driving me crazy - no matter how I phrased it, it wouldn't connect me to an agent, and kept spitting out generic statements about United's seating policies.

Has anyone figured out the "magic words" to cut through the auto-replies and get it to connect you to a rep? I finally got it to pass me along to one, but it was super aggravating as I was going around in what felt like circles.

Representative...representative....that doesn't work? It works most of time on the phone with other companies.

It would be quicker if you call United in less busy time of the day.

You�re in traction and can�t type; the nurse is leaving, so you have to speak to someone.

That there is your problem, right there. You want help with something unusual. Use your phone to call (not text) and keep repeating "representative" and/or "agent" to talk to a person. AI agents are incapable of dealing with non-standard problems like you were having, at least for now. From your experience, they're even incapable of recognizing when the situation warrants connecting with a human, so do it for them, and call.

Here is my chat approach: I write up my whole problem including Confirmation Number (s) and my full name. I then copy it and I paste it for every response. Any time they ask Did that resolve your problem? I hit no. Once the chatbot says it is transfering me to a representative I have to paste twice more once when it says "So and so will arrive shortly plese describe your issue" and then once when the agent actually comes on line and says How can I help you? It's a drag, but it works every time and usually takes less than five minutes to get to an agent with very little work from me.

Also, I am an Apple user, instead of launching through the app I search United in my iMessage history and I go back to the last conversation and just type Hi or Hello, that gets me to the chat bot, then I paste my issue.

I find that using this method I solve most issues faster with less full brain involvement from me than a call to the 1K line. I use 1K line for the most complex problems only.

I've got bad news for you. UA now has an AI chatbot responding to voice calls also. I actually had an easier time getting to a human on the app than on the phone.

Honestly, for this type of request, the chat has always been fine in the past. It's only recently that it switched to an AI bot and there's a less explicit path to getting to a human.

Sure, of course I could call, but for something where I can write up the explicit instructions and go about my day while the chat agent handles it, I never found it necessary to bother waiting on hold and reading off a PNR, when I can just type it. Maybe I've learned my lesson.

Remember UA's goal is to use AI Chat and decrease the use of human agents. While many here tend to have more complex issues, most chat users likely have simpler requests.

Today I just kept typing agent and I think the Bot got angry and made it clear unless I say what I want I won't get an agent:

That's why I do the method I laid out above. I have the entire request typed up and have to feed it to the bot at least three times, but I don't get these kind of nasty responses along the way.

Love your approach. Searching iMessage is genius too.