Troubleshooting Ask AI 520 error

Jessica Lara

August 28, 2026 13:42

This article covers the 520 error that may appear when opening Ask AI from the backend of a Finalsite-hosted website, including its causes and steps to take if the issue persists.

💡Quick answers

What causes a 520 error when launching Ask AI? This typically indicates a temporary disruption with the upstream AI service, not a problem with your site content, Help Center configuration, or Composer setup.
What is the first step? Refresh the page and try again. Temporary disruptions often resolve on their own within a minute or two.
How can an active service incident be confirmed? Check status.finalsite.com for any active incidents affecting Ask AI or the Finalsite platform.
When should Finalsite Support be contacted? If the error persists after refreshing and no active incident is listed, contact Support with the details below.

What causes this issue

A 520 error appears when the server returns an unexpected or empty response. When this occurs while launching Ask AI, the most likely cause is a temporary disruption with the upstream AI service. This is not a problem with your site content, Help Center setup, or Composer configuration.

These disruptions are typically short-lived and resolve without any action needed on your end.

Troubleshoot the 520 error

Step 1: Refresh the page and retry

Reload the Ask AI page. If the disruption was brief, the feature should load normally after a refresh.
If the error appears again, wait a minute or two and retry before taking further steps.

Step 2: Check for active service incidents

Visit status.finalsite.com to see whether an active incident has been posted for Ask AI or the broader Finalsite platform.
If an incident is listed, the team is already investigating.
Subscribe to updates on that page to receive a notification when the incident is resolved.

Step 3: Contact Finalsite Support

If the error persists after refreshing and no active incident appears on the status page, contact Finalsite Support. Include the following in the ticket:

Page URL. The full address of the site or page where the error occurs.
Expected behavior. What should happen when the Ask AI icon is clicked.
Actual behavior. What is happening instead, including the 520 error message text.
Time and date. When the issue was first noticed.