Components › Capability Discovery › Suggested Prompts
CD01 · Guidance

Suggested Prompts

Purpose UI elements that surface example actions or questions to help users understand what to ask and get started quickly. Addresses the "empty prompt box" problem.
Use when A user arrives at an AI interface with no prior context — fresh session, new feature, or first-time use. Surfaces calibrated examples based on interface capability.
Do not use Once a conversation is underway. Suggested prompts are a zero-state affordance, not persistent UI. Remove or hide them once the user has submitted their first message.
Failure mode prevented Users abandon AI interfaces because they don't know what to ask. An empty prompt box communicates nothing about what the system can do.
Example Dark Academia
Dark Academia
The Atelier
Neon Tide
The Archive
Candlelight
The Conservatory
Try asking
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Explore data
Overview
prompts-grid — 2–4 cards in a responsive grid, each showing an example actionprompts-inline — compact horizontal chips for constrained layoutsprompts-categorized — grouped prompts with a labeled section header per category
Design rule

Suggested prompts must reflect what the interface actually does — not generic AI capabilities. If the system cannot perform the suggested action, remove that prompt.

Theming API

Override these CSS custom properties to apply your own visual treatment without touching the component's behavioral contracts.

Shared semantic tokens

Token Controls
--rad-surface-card Container background if used inside a card
--rad-border-subtle Default border
--rad-color-text-primary Prompt card text
--rad-color-text-meta Section label color
--rad-color-approve Focus ring and icon accent
--rad-radius-card Card border radius

Component-scoped tokens

Token Controls
--rad-prompt-card-bg Default card background
--rad-prompt-card-border Default card border
--rad-prompt-card-hover-bg Hover state background
--rad-prompt-card-hover-border Hover state border
--rad-prompt-icon-color Arrow icon color

"*An empty box asks users to already know what the system can do. Suggested prompts teach by example, not by documentation.*"

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