For Antora documentation sites

Ask AI for your Antora docs

Q: Does it work with our custom UI bundle?

Yes. The install is two partial edits: head.hbs for the script tags, and your footer or navbar partial for the widget element. The UI bundle keeps everything else.

Q: What about version branches?

Each version Antora publishes (e.g. /v3.2/, /v3.1/) is indexed as its own source. Readers on a specific version get answers scoped to that version.

Drop in an Ask AI chatbot or AI search widget through Antora's UI bundle partials. Multi-repo content, version branches, AsciiDoc-aware indexing all handled. Source-cited answers, multilingual out of the box.

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docs.acme.dev/sdk/3.2/api/routes

Acme Docs

SDKCLIAPI

SDK›3.2›API reference›acme.routes

Per-route rate limiting

Each endpoint has its own bucket, configured at deploy time. Limits are enforced at the edge before requests reach your handler.

# Configure rate limit per route
curl -X PATCH https://api.acme.dev/v1/routes/checkout \
  -d '{"rate_limit": {"requests": 100, "per": "minute"}}'

Note: Authenticated traffic is metered separately from anonymous traffic.

Used by teams that take their documentation seriously

Install

Three ways to ship Biel on Antora

A floating Ask AI chatbot via a partial edit, an AI search field in the navbar, or a hosted MCP endpoint Claude and Cursor can query directly.

Full installation guide

Patch the UI bundle partials

Antora renders pages from a UI bundle of Handlebars partials. Add the script tags to src/partials/head.hbs and the chatbot button to src/partials/footer.hbs. Re-bundle the UI and rebuild.

→Floating Ask AI button on every page
→Default UI bundle or your custom UI
→Coexists with the search bundle of your choice
→Indexes AsciiDoc as rendered HTML

src/partials/footer.hbs

{{!-- 1. In src/partials/head.hbs append: --}}

<link rel="stylesheet"
  href="https://cdn.jsdelivr.net/npm/biel-search/dist/biel-search/biel-search.css">
<script type="module"
  src="https://cdn.jsdelivr.net/npm/biel-search/dist/biel-search/biel-search.esm.js">
</script>

{{!-- 2. In src/partials/footer.hbs (or any partial) drop in: --}}

<biel-button
  project="<YOUR_PROJECT_ID>"
  header-title="Documentation AI"
  button-position="bottom-right"
  modal-position="bottom-right"
  button-style="dark">
    Ask AI
</biel-button>

Add an AI search button to the navbar partial

Antora has no built-in search; teams typically wire up Lunr or Algolia. To add an AI search field to the navbar, drop a <biel-search-button> into src/partials/navbar.hbs (or wherever your UI bundle puts the navbar search slot).

→Drop-in AI search field in the navbar
→Works alongside an existing Lunr or Algolia setup
→Returns synthesized answer, not a list
→Same UI-bundle pattern as the chatbot

src/partials/navbar.hbs

{{!-- 1. In src/partials/head.hbs append: --}}

<link rel="stylesheet"
  href="https://cdn.jsdelivr.net/npm/biel-search/dist/biel-search/biel-search.css">
<script type="module"
  src="https://cdn.jsdelivr.net/npm/biel-search/dist/biel-search/biel-search.esm.js">
</script>

{{!-- 2. In src/partials/navbar.hbs, next to or in place of
        an existing search element: --}}

<biel-search-button
  project="<YOUR_PROJECT_ID>"
  header-title="Documentation AI"
  button-style="rounded">
    Search
</biel-search-button>

Make your docs queryable by AI agents

Every Biel project ships with a hosted MCP endpoint. Claude, Cursor, Cline, and other MCP-compatible assistants can search your Antora site directly. Configure once in mcp.json.

→Hosted MCP server, no self-hosting
→Same index as the chatbot, one source of truth
→Works with Claude Desktop, Cursor, Cline, Zed
→Auth via project token, scoped per-workspace

mcp.json

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "biel-ai": {
      "name": "Biel.ai",
      "type": "http",
      "url": "https://mcp.biel.ai/v2/YOUR_PROJECT_SLUG/mcp"
    }
  }
}

Biel.ai vs antora-lunr

Antora has no built-in search. Most sites add @antora/lunr-extension (the official Antora extension for offline keyword search) or wire up Algolia DocSearch. Biel is built for natural-language questions with synthesized, multi-repo-aware answers. Many Antora sites run Biel alongside their existing keyword search.

Dimension	`@antora/lunr-extension`	Biel.ai
Search engine	Antora ships without a search engine. The de-facto standard is `@antora/lunr-extension` (offline keyword search). Algolia DocSearch is the other common path.	Drop in via the same UI bundle. Natural-language questions with synthesized answers, source-cited.
AsciiDoc handling	`@antora/lunr-extension` and Algolia both index the rendered HTML. Macros and roles surface as plain text.	Indexes the rendered HTML, with awareness of admonitions, code blocks, and cross-references.
Multi-repo content	Antora's strength: pull docs from many repos into one site. Search engines flatten them all into one index.	Index each content source as its own logical source in Biel. Citations show which repo the answer came from.
Versioning	Antora publishes each version as its own URL tree. Each version has its own search index.	Per-version indexes. Scope answers to the user's current version automatically.
Component / module model	Search engines see flat HTML. The component → module → page hierarchy is invisible.	Citations preserve the breadcrumb. Readers see component name and module, not just page title.
Analytics	Algolia exposes query volume; `@antora/lunr-extension` does not. Neither tells you what your docs do not cover.	Unanswered questions, satisfaction trends, and a Content Gaps view that updates daily.
Install	antora-lunr: register the extension in the playbook, rebuild. Algolia: an account, a crawler, theme integration.	Two partial edits and a UI re-bundle. Live in 15 minutes.
Cost	`@antora/lunr-extension` is free; Algolia is paid past free tiers.	From $50/mo, self-serve. 14-day free trial, no credit card required.

Things teams ask during evaluation

Does it work with our custom UI bundle?

Yes. The install is two partial edits: head.hbs for the script tags, and your footer or navbar partial for the widget element. The UI bundle keeps everything else.

Does it handle multi-repo content sources?

Yes, and this is where Antora and Biel pair well. Add each repo Antora pulls from as a Biel source, and citations preserve which repo the answer came from. Useful for SDK + product + tutorials docs that live in different repos.

What about version branches?

Each version Antora publishes (e.g. /v3.2/, /v3.1/) is indexed as its own source. Readers on a specific version get answers scoped to that version.

Does it understand AsciiDoc admonitions and macros?

Yes. Indexing happens against the rendered HTML, so admonitions, code blocks, and cross-references are read in context. Citations resolve to the right anchor.

Can we keep `@antora/lunr-extension` or Algolia DocSearch?

Yes. Biel sits alongside as a separate widget for natural-language questions. Many Antora sites run the official Antora Lunr extension for keyword lookup and Biel for question-shaped queries.

How long does the install take?

Two partial edits, one UI re-bundle, one Antora rebuild. Most teams are live in 15 minutes including indexing.

Where does our content go?

EU-hosted by default. GDPR compliant. Your content is never used to train models.

Make your Antora docs answer questions

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