How to enable the custom modal in AI Web Push

The custom modal, called Modal personalizado in the plugin, is your own site's window, with the message you choose and at the moment you choose, that appears before the browser notification prompt. With it, your site explains to the reader what they will receive before asking for permission, which is what Google recommends. This step by step applies to the plugin in version 1.9.3 or newer, which is already live and reaches each site when its plugin updates.

In Chrome on Android phones, subscriber capture has changed. The notification prompt used to appear in the middle of the screen, dim the page and interrupt reading with two buttons, Block and Allow. From version 155, which starts rolling out on October 6, 2026 and reaches devices gradually, Chrome shows a discreet card at the top, just below the address bar, that hides by itself if the reader does not tap it.

That is why, more than ever, the custom modal needs to be used, because the Chrome prompt only appears for those who have already said yes to your site. Those who depend only on Chrome's standard prompt may notice variation in subscriber entries while readers get used to the new card. AI Web Push is already prepared for this change, and anyone using the plugin needs to adapt as soon as possible. What changed in Chrome, in detail, is in the post The Chrome notification prompt changed on Android.

Step by step

In the side menu of the WordPress dashboard, click "Ai Web Push". The screen has six tabs, named in Portuguese, "Configurações da API", "Modal", "Configurações Avançadas", "Migração", "Manutenção" and "Changelog".
Open the "Modal" tab.
Check the "Modal personalizado" (custom modal) option. The fields to build your window will appear.

"Mensagem do modal" (modal message) is the text the reader will see, up to 100 characters.

"Texto do botão aceitar" and "Texto do botão cancelar" (accept and cancel button text) are the texts of the two buttons, up to 20 characters each.

"Ícone personalizado do modal" (custom modal icon) is the window image. Without an image, the plugin uses your site's favicon.

As an example, the plugin default text is "Receba as últimas notícias e atualizações" (Get the latest news and updates), with the buttons "Permitir" (Allow) and "Agora não" (Not now).
In the same tab, choose the "Posição do modal personalizado" (custom modal position). There is one choice for desktop and another for mobile. The "Overlay do modal personalizado" (custom modal overlay) options are also there.
Choose when the modal appears. There are two ways.

In "Atraso do modal" (modal delay), you set how many seconds after the page loads the modal appears. The value 0 shows it right away.

In "Ativação por scroll" (scroll activation), the modal appears when the reader scrolls the page down to the "Porcentagem de scroll" (scroll percentage) you set. The default is 25. If you prefer to ask only after the reader shows interest in the page, use scroll activation.
Set the "Intervalo de reexibição" (reshow interval). It is the time, in minutes, that your site waits to ask again of the same reader who tapped the cancel button (the "Agora não", Not now) or who let the Chrome card hide without tapping it. The request only comes back when the reader opens another page of your site. The default is 1440 minutes, which is 24 hours. With Modal personalizado on, the value 0 makes the request come back right on the next page. The field always shows in the "Modal" tab, with Modal personalizado on or off, but asking right on the next page only goes together with the modal on. Without it, each new request is Chrome's own card, and the field warns that a very low value can lead the browser to block new requests. If you have no reason to change it, keep 1440.
Click the save button at the end of the page. In WordPress in English it usually reads "Save Changes".

What the reader will see

After the time or the scrolling you set, your site's window appears, with your message, the icon and the two buttons, in the position you chose.
If the reader taps the accept button, the browser's own prompt asking for permission appears next. Your modal does not replace that prompt, it comes before it, and that is why the browser prompt only appears for those who have already said yes to your site. In Chrome on Android phones, from version 155, this prompt is a discreet card at the top, just below the address bar, with the Allow button. The page stays free and, if the reader does not tap the card, it hides by itself.
If the reader taps "Agora não" (Not now), or if the Chrome card hides without the reader tapping it, the plugin only asks again after the "Intervalo de reexibição", and only on another page of your site.
And if the reader does not tap the card right away and turns notifications on later, at the icon next to the address, AI Web Push puts that reader in your subscriber base. If the site was closed when they turned it on, the registration happens on the next visit to the site. Those who were already subscribed are not registered again.

How to check that it worked

Test as a new reader. Open your site in a new Chrome profile. Do not use an incognito window, because push does not work there.

The modal appears with your message, your buttons, the icon and the position you chose, after the time or the scrolling you set.
When you tap the accept button, the Chrome prompt appears asking for permission. In Chrome on Android phones with version 155, it is the discreet card at the top.
When you accept, the plugin sends the reader's subscription.

Check that the "Modal personalizado" option is checked and that you saved the page.
Wait for the "Atraso do modal" (modal delay) you set, or scroll the page to the "Porcentagem de scroll" (scroll percentage), if you use scroll activation. A long delay or a high percentage can make it look like the modal does not open.
Check whether you already tapped "Agora não" (Not now) in that browser, or already let the Chrome card hide. In that case, the modal only comes back after the "Intervalo de reexibição" (reshow interval), and on another page. To test from scratch, use a new Chrome profile.
Do not test in an incognito window.
If it still does not appear, contact AI Web Push support.

An honest note

Turning on the custom modal lets your site explain what the reader will receive before the Chrome prompt, at the moment you choose. After the yes in your site's window, the reader still sees the Chrome card and needs to tap Allow on it. How much this changes subscriber capture on each site has not been measured yet, so we do not promise a number.

Frequently asked questions about version 1.9.3 and Chrome 155

1. What changes in subscriber capture with Chrome 155?

In Chrome on Android phones, capture has changed. The notification prompt was a box in the middle of the screen and became a discreet card at the top, which hides if the reader does not tap it. The rollout starts on October 6, 2026 and is gradual, and AI Web Push is already prepared for this change.

2. What happens to people who are already subscribed?

Version 1.9.3 does not register again those who were already subscribed and does not remove anyone from your base. The Chrome announcement talks about the new card and does not mention those who accepted before.

3. Do I need to do anything?

Yes. Version 1.9.3 is already live. Update the plugin through the plugins update in WordPress, turn on the custom modal and check the Intervalo de reexibição (reshow interval), as soon as possible. The step by step is at the start of this article.

4. Do I have to turn on the custom modal?

No. The plugin keeps working without it, with Chrome's standard prompt. But turning it on is what we recommend now, more than ever, because the custom modal is your site's window, with your message and at the moment you choose, and the Chrome prompt only appears for those who have already said yes. Those who use only the standard prompt may notice variation in subscriber entries while readers get used to the new card.

5. With the modal on, does the Chrome prompt go away?

No. The Chrome prompt appears after the reader taps Permitir (Allow) in your modal. In Chrome on Android phones, it is the same discreet card at the top, and the reader still needs to tap Allow on it. If they do not tap, the card hides by itself.

6. A new event appeared in my Tag Manager and GA4 after the update. What is it?

It is the new count of those who did not respond to the Chrome card, which hid or was closed without a response. It is not those who said no, and that person can still turn notifications on later, at the icon next to the address. The name of the new event, as it appears in the tool, is below.

ai_web_push_permission_timeout

The new events and what each one measures are in the post AI Web Push and Google Tag Manager.

7. The number of those who said no got smaller after the update. Is that an error?

No. After the update, this count includes only those who really said no, and those who simply did not respond to the Chrome card move to a count of their own. To compare with before, add the two together, as in the block below.

ai_web_push_permission_denied + ai_web_push_permission_timeout

The full explanation is in What changes in your numbers after you update.

8. Can a reader who did not tap the card still subscribe?

Yes. And if the reader does not tap the card right away and turns notifications on later, at the icon next to the address, AI Web Push puts that reader in your subscriber base. If the site was closed when they turned it on, the registration happens on the next visit to the site. The plugin also asks again, on another page, after the Intervalo de reexibição (reshow interval).

9. Will I get more subscribers?

1.9.3 starts registering people who accept later, who were left out before. Nobody has measured yet how much this changes on your site.

10. What about desktop? When does it reach my phone?

The Chrome announcement only covers Android, and what changes on desktop has not been published. Chrome version 155 starts rolling out on October 6, 2026 and reaches devices gradually, as each one's Chrome updates. For a while, your site will receive readers with the old prompt and readers with the new card.