chat-sdk

# Chat SDK

Unified TypeScript SDK for building chat bots across Slack, Teams, Google Chat, Discord, Telegram, GitHub, Linear, and WhatsApp. Write bot logic once, deploy everywhere.

## Start with published sources

When Chat SDK is installed in a user project, inspect the published files that ship in `node_modules`:

```
node_modules/chat/docs/                    # bundled docs
node_modules/chat/dist/index.d.ts          # core API types
node_modules/chat/dist/jsx-runtime.d.ts    # JSX runtime types
node_modules/chat/docs/contributing/       # adapter-authoring docs
node_modules/chat/resources/guides/        # framework/platform guides (markdown)
node_modules/chat/resources/templates.json # starter templates (title, description, href)
```

If one of the paths below does not exist, that package is not installed in the project yet.

Read these before writing code:
- `node_modules/chat/docs/getting-started.mdx` — install and setup
- `node_modules/chat/docs/usage.mdx` — `Chat` config and lifecycle
- `node_modules/chat/docs/handling-events.mdx` — event routing and handlers
- `node_modules/chat/docs/threads-messages-channels.mdx` — thread/channel/message model
- `node_modules/chat/docs/posting-messages.mdx` — post, edit, delete, schedule
- `node_modules/chat/docs/streaming.mdx` — AI SDK integration and streaming semantics
- `node_modules/chat/docs/cards.mdx` — JSX cards
- `node_modules/chat/docs/actions.mdx` — button/select interactions
- `node_modules/chat/docs/modals.mdx` — modal submit/close flows
- `node_modules/chat/docs/slash-commands.mdx` — slash command routing
- `node_modules/chat/docs/direct-messages.mdx` — DM behavior and `openDM()`
- `node_modules/chat/docs/files.mdx` — attachments/uploads
- `node_modules/chat/docs/state.mdx` — persistence, locking, dedupe
- `node_modules/chat/docs/adapters.mdx` — cross-platform feature matrix
- `node_modules/chat/docs/api/chat.mdx` — exact `Chat` API
- `node_modules/chat/docs/api/thread.mdx` — exact `Thread` API
- `node_modules/chat/docs/api/message.mdx` — exact `Message` API
- `node_modules/chat/docs/api/modals.mdx` — modal element and event details

For the specific adapter or state package you are using, inspect that installed package's `dist/index.d.ts` export surface in `node_modules`.

## Available resources

<!-- RESOURCES:START -->

### Guides

- `node_modules/chat/resources/guides/how-to-build-an-ai-agent-for-slack-with-chat-sdk-and-ai-sdk.md` — Build a Slack AI agent using Chat SDK, AI SDK's ToolLoopAgent, and Vercel AI Gateway. Covers project setup, tool definitions, streaming responses, deployment to Vercel, and scaling tool selection with toolpick.
- `node_modules/chat/resources/guides/human-in-the-loop-with-chat-sdk-and-workflow-sdk.md` — Pause durable workflows on Slack approval cards using Chat SDK and Workflow SDK. Uses createWebhook to suspend workflows until a button click, with patterns for multi-stage approvals, timeouts via durable sleep, and approver validation.
- `node_modules/chat/resources/guides/liveblocks-chat-sdk-ai-sdk.md` — Build an AI agent that replies to @-mentions in Liveblocks comment threads with streamed responses and tool calling. Uses Chat SDK, the Liveblocks adapter, AI SDK's ToolLoopAgent, and Redis for thread subscriptions and distributed locking.
- `node_modules/chat/resources/guides/slack-bot-vercel-blob.md` — Build a Slack bot that lists, reads, uploads, and deletes files in Vercel Blob through tool calls. Uses Chat SDK, AI SDK's ToolLoopAgent, and Files SDK's createFileTools factory with approval-gated write tools and a read-only mode.
- `node_modules/chat/resources/guides/run-and-track-deploys-from-slack.md` — Build a Slack deploy bot with Chat SDK and Vercel Workflow. Dispatch GitHub Actions from a slash command, gate production behind approval, poll for completion, and notify Linear and GitHub when the run finishes.
- `node_modules/chat/resources/guides/triage-form-submissions-with-chat-sdk.md` — Build a Slack bot that triages form submissions with interactive cards. Forward, edit, or mark as spam without leaving Slack. Built with Chat SDK, Hono, and Resend.
- `node_modules/chat/resources/guides/how-to-build-a-slack-bot-with-next-js-and-redis.md` — This guide walks through building a Slack bot with Next.js, covering project setup, Slack app configuration, event handling, interactive features, and deployment.
- `node_modules/chat/resources/guides/create-a-discord-support-bot-with-nuxt-and-redis.md` — This guide walks through building a Discord support bot with Nuxt, covering project setup, Discord app configuration, Gateway forwarding, AI-powered responses, and deployment.
- `node_modules/chat/resources/guides/ship-a-github-code-review-bot-with-hono-and-redis.md` — This guide walks through building a GitHub bot that reviews pull requests on demand. When a user @mentions the bot on a PR, Chat SDK picks up the mention, spins up a Vercel Sandbox with the repo cloned, and uses AI SDK to analyze the diff.

### Templates

Listed in `node_modules/chat/resources/templates.json`:

- **Chat SDK Liveblocks Bot** — Build a bot that you can engage with inside Liveblocks. (https://vercel.com/templates/next.js/chat-sdk-liveblocks-bot)
- **Durable iMessage Agent** — Durable iMessage agent powered by the Sendblue adapter. (https://vercel.com/templates/nitro/durable-imessage-ai-agent)
- **Knowledge Agent** — Open source file-system and knowledge based agent template. Build AI agents that stay up to date with your knowledge base. (https://vercel.com/templates/nuxt/chat-sdk-knowledge-agent)
- **Community Agent** — Open source AI-powered Slack community management bot with a built-in Next.js admin panel. Uses Chat SDK, AI SDK, and Vercel Workflow. (https://vercel.com/templates/next.js/chat-sdk-community-agent)

<!-- RESOURCES:END -->

## Quick start

```typescript
import { Chat } from "chat";
import { createSlackAdapter } from "@chat-adapter/slack";
import { createRedisState } from "@chat-adapter/state-redis";

const bot = new Chat({
  userName: "mybot",
  adapters: {
    slack: createSlackAdapter(),
  },
  state: createRedisState(),
  dedupeTtlMs: 600_000,
});

bot.onNewMention(async (thread) => {
  await thread.subscribe();
  await thread.post("Hello! I'm listening to this thread.");
});

bot.onSubscribedMessage(async (thread, message) => {
  await thread.post(`You said: ${message.text}`);
});
```

## Core concepts

- **Chat** — main entry point; coordinates adapters, routing, locks, and state
- **Adapters** — platform-specific integrations for Slack, Teams, Google Chat, Discord, Telegram, GitHub, Linear, and WhatsApp
- **State adapters** — persistence for subscriptions, locks, dedupe, and thread state
- **Thread** — conversation context with `post()`, `stream()`, `subscribe()`, `setState()`, `startTyping()`
- **Message** — normalized content with `text`, `formatted`, attachments, author info, and platform `raw`
- **Channel** — container for threads and top-level posts

## Event handlers

| Handler | Trigger |
|---------|---------|
| `onNewMention` | Bot @-mentioned in an unsubscribed thread |
| `onDirectMessage` | New DM in an unsubscribed DM thread |
| `onSubscribedMessage` | Any message in a subscribed thread |
| `onNewMessage(regex)` | Regex match in an unsubscribed thread |
| `onReaction(emojis?)` | Emoji added or removed |
| `onAction(actionIds?)` | Button clicks and select/radio interactions |
| `onModalSubmit(callbackId?)` | Modal form submitted |
| `onModalClose(callbackId?)` | Modal dismissed/cancelled |
| `onSlashCommand(commands?)` | Slash command invocation |
| `onAssistantThreadStarted` | Slack assistant thread opened |
| `onAssistantContextChanged` | Slack assistant context changed |
| `onAppHomeOpened` | Slack App Home opened |
| `onMemberJoinedChannel` | Slack member joined channel event |

Read `node_modules/chat/docs/handling-events.mdx`, `node_modules/chat/docs/actions.mdx`, `node_modules/chat/docs/modals.mdx`, and `node_modules/chat/docs/slash-commands.mdx` before wiring handlers. `onDirectMessage` behavior is documented in `node_modules/chat/docs/direct-messages.mdx`.

## Streaming

Pass any `AsyncIterable<string>` to `thread.post()`. For AI SDK, prefer `result.fullStream` over `result.textStream` when available so step boundaries are preserved.

```typescript
import { ToolLoopAgent } from "ai";

const agent = new ToolLoopAgent({ model: "anthropic/claude-4.5-sonnet" });

bot.onNewMention(async (thread, message) => {
  const result = await agent.stream({ prompt: message.text });
  await thread.post(result.fullStream);
});
```

Key details:
- `streamingUpdateIntervalMs` controls post+edit fallback cadence
- `fallbackStreamingPlaceholderText` defaults to `"..."`; set `null` to disable
- Structured `StreamChunk` support is Slack-only; other adapters ignore non-text chunks

## Cards and modals (JSX)

Set `jsxImportSource: "chat"` in `tsconfig.json`.

Card components:
- `Card`, `CardText`, `Section`, `Fields`, `Field`, `Button`, `CardLink`, `LinkButton`, `Actions`, `Select`, `SelectOption`, `RadioSelect`, `Table`, `Image`, `Divider`

Modal components:
- `Modal`, `TextInput`, `Select`, `SelectOption`, `RadioSelect`

`Button` and `Modal` accept a `callbackUrl` prop — when triggered, the SDK POSTs the action payload to that URL in addition to firing any `onAction` / `onModalSubmit` handler. Use this for webhook-based workflow flows. See `node_modules/chat/docs/actions.mdx` and `node_modules/chat/docs/modals.mdx`.

```tsx
await thread.post(
  <Card title="Order #1234">
    <CardText>Your order has been received.</CardText>
    <Actions>
      <Button id="approve" style="primary">Approve</Button>
      <Button id="reject" style="danger">Reject</Button>
    </Actions>
  </Card>
);
```

## Adapter inventory

See [chat-sdk.dev/adapters](https://chat-sdk.dev/adapters) for the current list of official, vendor-official, and community adapters, including package names and authors. For the exact factory function and config types of an installed adapter, inspect its `dist/index.d.ts` in `node_modules`.

## Building a custom adapter

Read these published docs first:
- `node_modules/chat/docs/contributing/building.mdx`
- `node_modules/chat/docs/contributing/testing.mdx`
- `node_modules/chat/docs/contributing/publishing.mdx`

Also inspect:
- `node_modules/chat/dist/index.d.ts` — `Adapter` and related interfaces
- `node_modules/@chat-adapter/shared/dist/index.d.ts` — shared errors and utilities
- Installed official adapter `dist/index.d.ts` files — reference implementations for config and APIs

A custom adapter needs request verification, webhook parsing, message/thread/channel operations, ID encoding/decoding, and a format converter. Use `BaseFormatConverter` from `chat` and shared utilities from `@chat-adapter/shared`.

## Webhook setup

Each registered adapter exposes `bot.webhooks.<name>`. Wire those directly to your HTTP framework routes. See `node_modules/chat/resources/guides/how-to-build-a-slack-bot-with-next-js-and-redis.md` and `node_modules/chat/resources/guides/create-a-discord-support-bot-with-nuxt-and-redis.md` for framework-specific route patterns.