> AI agents: this is one page from Mammoth Analytics documentation. The index of all pages as Markdown is https://mammoth.io/docs/llms.txt. Append `.md` to any docs URL, or send `Accept: text/markdown`, to get Markdown.

# Combine datasets and read PDFs with the AI Agent

> Ask the Mammoth AI Agent to stack or join datasets, pick the data to use, and read tables from a PDF or a workbook with many sheets into datasets.
>
> Applies to: Enterprise plans. Where: Agent › a Build chat

Ask the AI Agent to bring data together, or give it a PDF or workbook to turn into datasets. When it needs you to choose data, it shows a card instead of asking you to type names. Open it from **Agent** in the left navigation (see [What the AI Agent can do](https://mammoth.io/docs/learn/agent/skills/)).

## Combine datasets with the agent

Ask, for example, "Put the rows of January and February into one dataset" or "Add Customers' columns to Orders, matched on a shared column". When "combine" isn't clear, the agent asks **How should these go together?**:

| Option | Example |
| --- | --- |
| **Stack files that look the same** | Twelve monthly exports, identical columns, one long table |
| **Stack files that don't match** | Two systems, different column names, one master table |
| **Add columns from another table** | Put customer names onto an orders table, matched on ID |
| **Merge two columns into one** | First name and last name become full name |
| **Not sure — look at what I have and suggest** | The agent looks at your data and suggests one |

If the datasets look like they should stay apart, the agent checks first: **Combine them** or **Keep them separate**. To stack datasets, the combine card offers two ways:

| Choice | What happens |
| --- | --- |
| **Move them into one dataset** | The others become part of the kept one, and stop refreshing on their own. |
| **Send into a dataset** | The originals stay, and keep sending rows as they refresh. The target can be a **New dataset**, which fills on every refresh. |

Click **Combine** to run it. Without the agent, see [Combine datasets](https://mammoth.io/docs/learn/organise/combine-datasets/) and [Join two datasets on a shared column](https://mammoth.io/docs/learn/clean-and-shape/join/).

## Pick your data or bring in new data

| Card | What you do |
| --- | --- |
| **Use something I have** or **Bring in new data** | Say whether to work with data already in Mammoth or add new data |
| **Pick from your data** | Select datasets, views or folders (the title says which, for example **Select Datasets**). Use **Browse all…** to see everything, or **Upload a file**. Click **Confirm**. For a folder: "Anything new that lands there gets picked up." |
| Adding several sources | Add each upload or source to one card, then click **That's all of them** |
| **Select columns to import** | Tick the columns to bring in, or **Select all**, then click **Apply** |

## Read PDFs and workbooks with the agent

Give the agent a workbook with several sheets, or a PDF through its upload card or the data picker, and it reads the file with the interpreter and says what it found. A PDF, Word or PowerPoint file attached in the message box is different: the agent reads it as a document for that chat and doesn't import it ([Add data to a message](https://mammoth.io/docs/learn/agent/add-data-to-chat/)).

For a PDF it says "Reading the document… a long one can take a few minutes." and then, for example, "Found 3 tables. The main one, Table 1, has 240 rows".

| Option | What it does |
| --- | --- |
| **Save all 3** (or **Save it** for one table) | Saves each table as a dataset |
| **Review first** | Opens the interpreter to check the tables before saving. Suggested when headers look merged, a table may be split across pages, or labels run onto a second row |
| **Not now** | Leaves the file as it is. Nothing is made |

For a workbook whose sheets share the same columns, the card says how many sheets match. **Combine into one table** stacks them, with a Source column naming each row's sheet. **Review in the interpreter** opens them there.

Once saved, the reading becomes the dataset's recipe: "the next file you add to it is read the same way, and if one doesn't fit, Mammoth pauses it and asks." **Watch a folder** asks the agent to watch a folder for new files and add them the same way. See [Extract tables from PDFs](https://mammoth.io/docs/learn/get-data-in/extract-from-pdfs/).

## Related

- [What the AI Agent can do](https://mammoth.io/docs/learn/agent/skills/): every skill and who can use it.
- [Add files and data to a chat](https://mammoth.io/docs/learn/agent/add-data-to-chat/): attach files in the message box.
- [Plans and runs](https://mammoth.io/docs/learn/agent/plans-and-runs/): approve the changes the agent proposes.

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Source: https://mammoth.io/docs/learn/agent/combine-and-read-files.md · Updated: 2026-11-08