Grok how-to

Getting supplier invoices from the inbox to Hubdoc automatically

This is the simpler route for supplier invoices. There is no server to run. Your mail rules and Hubdoc do the forwarding and coding, and a Grok skill flags what needs a look. If you want Grok to create the invoices in Xero itself, see the gateway route.

The fix: rules forward, Hubdoc codes, Grok flags

Flow diagram: mail rules forward known suppliers to Hubdoc, Hubdoc codes the invoice and publishes it to Xero as Awaiting Approval, and the Grok skill flags the odd ones for you — Each tool does the part it is reliable at.

Mail rule: forwards invoices from suppliers you know to Hubdoc. No AI needed.
Hubdoc: codes each invoice the same way every time, from that supplier's rule.
Grok skill: reads what is left, labels it and flags anything odd.
You: check the short list, then approve the invoices in Xero.

The same job, before and after

	Before: a prompt each time	After: rules plus a skill
Starts when	You paste the prompt	An Automation runs it
Forwards to Hubdoc	Grok, from the prompt	A mail rule per supplier
Codes the invoice	You, one invoice at a time	Hubdoc's supplier rule
You check	Every invoice	The odd ones list
Changed bank details	Only if you notice	Flagged for a phone check
Opens Hubdoc or Xero	No	No, the rules do that part

Step by step

List your regular suppliers. For each, note the Xero account and tax rate their invoices belong to. Your bookkeeper can confirm the list.
In Hubdoc, open Settings, then Suppliers, then a supplier, then Integrations. Set Publish As to an invoice, pick the account and tax rate, and set the status to Awaiting Approval. Leave Auto-sync off for now. (Hubdoc's guide)
Copy your Hubdoc email address. It is in the Upload Document window and in Organization Settings. (Hubdoc's guide)
In Outlook or Gmail, add a rule per regular supplier: from that supplier's address, forward to your Hubdoc address.
In Grok, connect your mailbox from the Connectors page (xAI's guide). Turn on write tools so it can label or file. Leave send tools off.
Open the Skill Creator and describe the job using the starting skill further down this page. Run it by hand on a week of email and compare its list with yours.
Once it matches, create an Automation that runs the skill each weekday morning. Add the skill by name in the instructions (xAI's post).
When a supplier's invoices have come through right a few times, turn on Auto-sync for that supplier in Hubdoc. One supplier at a time.

Gotchas

Auto-sync publishes to Xero without review. Keep the status at Awaiting Approval so every invoice still waits for your click.
Never act on a change of bank details from an email. Ring the supplier on a number you already hold.
A PDF holding several invoices arrives in Hubdoc as one document. Add #split to the email subject to split it page by page.
Email triggers on Automations need SuperGrok. Scheduled Automations are open to all users, per xAI.
The Outlook connector needs a Microsoft work or school account. Gmail starts read only.
If you want Grok to create coded draft invoices in Xero itself, set up the gateway route instead.

What the official help article misses: It explains how to make a skill but not how one is triggered, which plans include it, or what it can reach. That depends on your connectors, and there is no built in one for Hubdoc or Xero. Read xAI's article.

What Grok can and cannot reach

Diagram: Grok reaches Gmail and Outlook through connectors; it has no connector to Hubdoc or Xero — A skill can only reach what your connectors reach.

Grok's built in connectors are Gmail, Google Calendar, Google Drive, OneDrive, Outlook, Teams, SharePoint and Salesforce (xAI's list).

There is no Hubdoc or Xero connector among them. Xero's own AI connector is built for Claude and is read only.

So out of the box, a skill cannot open Hubdoc, see your chart of accounts or check an invoice in Xero. Ask it to, and it may say it has when it has not.

A starting skill you can adapt

Open the Skill Creator and describe the job in plain words, with your own supplier names:

Name: Supplier invoice check.
Job: read admin inbox emails since the last run that look like invoices.
Not an invoice (statements, remittances, quotes, order confirmations): apply the right label (Gmail) or move to the right folder (Outlook).
Flag, do not act: a supplier not on our list, a credit note, an invoice with no PDF, an invoice number already seen in the inbox, or any change to a supplier's bank details.
Finish with one list: what was labelled, what was flagged, and why.

Leave forwarding to your mail rules. Then the skill never needs permission to send.

The bank details line matters most. Scammers change the account number on a real looking invoice, and no Hubdoc rule will catch it.

Where the skill gets in the way

It can misread. A skill is instructions, not a guarantee. Spot check its labels for the first few weeks.
It cannot see Xero. It will miss a duplicate that arrives weeks apart, or by post.
Auto-sync skips review. A wrong account on a Hubdoc rule repeats on every invoice from that supplier.
Sending is a separate permission. In Gmail, forwarding needs Grok's send tools turned on, and labels need their own.
Your data. Invoices carry bank details and prices. Look at Grok's data settings before you connect the admin inbox.

Xero is building the same thing in

In September 2026 Xero renamed Files to Documents and put Smart Document Capture there (Xero's post).

Xero says a forwarding address and supplier rules are coming "in the coming months". Creating invoices straight into awaiting approval is further out.

Hubdoc works today. Check Xero's Documents area each quarter in case it can take over.

So, can Grok do it?

Partly

Partly. A Grok skill can sort and flag supplier invoices on its own, but it cannot reach Hubdoc or Xero. Mail rules do the forwarding and Hubdoc's supplier rules do the coding.

Terms used in this guide

Grok: xAI's AI assistant, on the web and phone.
Skill: Saved instructions Grok reuses for one job. The built in Skill Creator writes one with you.
Connector: Lets Grok read, and if allowed act in, another app such as Gmail or Outlook.
Automation: A job Grok runs by itself, on a schedule or when an email arrives.
Mail rule: An Outlook rule or Gmail filter that forwards email automatically.
Hubdoc: Xero's app that reads emailed supplier invoices and sends them into Xero.
Supplier rule: A Hubdoc setting per supplier: account, tax rate and status.
Xero: The accounting software where invoices are approved and paid.
Awaiting Approval: A supplier invoice in Xero (Xero calls it a bill) that is entered but not yet approved for payment.

Last checked 3 Nov 2026 against the sources listed at the end of this page.

Sources

Skills launched on Grok 4.3 across grok.com, iOS and Android; a skill can be described in conversation, uploaded as a file or written from scratch; built in skills include a Skill Creator. xAI, Skills in web, iOS, and Android (18 May 2026), checked 2 Nov 2026.
Grok's built in connectors are Gmail and Google Calendar, Google Drive, OneDrive, Outlook Mail and Calendar, Microsoft Teams, SharePoint and Salesforce, plus custom MCP connectors. xAI Docs, Connectors, checked 2 Nov 2026.
The Gmail connector's base access is read only; write tools cover drafts, trash and labels; send tools cover send, reply and forward. xAI Docs, Gmail and Google Calendar connector, checked 2 Nov 2026.
The Outlook connector can send, reply all, forward and move email, and requires a Microsoft work or school account. xAI Docs, Outlook connector, checked 2 Nov 2026.
Automations are jobs Grok runs on its own, on a one time or repeating schedule or on an email trigger matching sender, recipient or subject; instructions can use connectors and skills; email triggers need SuperGrok. xAI, Grok Automations (16 Jul 2026), checked 2 Nov 2026.
Xero's AI connector and plugin for Claude are read only and cannot create, edit, approve, reconcile or pay in Xero. Xero, Xero and Claude, checked 2 Nov 2026.
Each Hubdoc organisation has its own email address, shown in the Upload Document window and in Organization Settings; adding #split to the subject splits a multi page PDF into one document per page. Hubdoc Help Centre, Upload or email documents into Hubdoc, checked 2 Nov 2026.
Supplier settings sit under the supplier's Integrations; Auto-sync automatically configures and publishes all documents from that supplier to Xero, and Publish As sets the transaction type. Hubdoc Help Centre, Customise configurations by supplier, checked 2 Nov 2026.
Hubdoc can publish invoices to Xero as Draft, Awaiting Approval or Awaiting Payment. ApprovalMax Knowledge Base, approving Xero bills pulled from Hubdoc, checked 2 Nov 2026.
On 18 Sep 2026 Xero renamed Files to Documents, home of Smart Document Capture; a bespoke forwarding address and supplier rules are planned for the coming months, and creating invoices into awaiting approval is further ahead. Xero Blog, Files is now called Documents (18 Sep 2026), checked 2 Nov 2026.