discord-web-chat-server

Node backend for discord-web-chat-widget: every website chat becomes a thread in your Discord #web-intake channel, answered by Claude by default — until a team member replies in the thread and takes over.

How it works

• Web visitors connect over WebSocket with a persistent session id (stored in the browser). Each session maps to one Discord thread, so returning visitors continue the same conversation.
• Threads are created in #web-intake (auto-created if missing — the bot needs the Manage Channels permission for that) and named by AI: HH:MM • <8-word intent summary>.
• The AI answers every visitor message using your prompt/knowledge file.
• Human takeover: anyone who replies inside the thread pauses the AI; their messages are relayed to the visitor live. The AI resumes 10 minutes (configurable) after the last human message.
• Files/images uploaded from the widget are posted into the thread as attachments; image attachments are also shown to the AI (Anthropic provider).

Standalone

npm install -g discord-web-chat-server

WEB_DISCORD_BOT_TOKEN=... ANTHROPIC_API_KEY=... \
discord-web-chat-server --prompt-file ./prompt.md --port 3900

Run discord-web-chat-server --help for all flags (--channel, --guild, --model, --human-idle-minutes, --data-dir, --env, …).

As a module

import { createDiscordWebChat } from 'discord-web-chat-server'

const bridge = createDiscordWebChat({
  token: process.env.WEB_DISCORD_BOT_TOKEN,
  port: 3900,
  intakeChannelName: 'web-intake',
  promptFile: './prompt.md',        // hot-reloaded; or systemPrompt: '...'
  humanIdleMinutes: 10,
  ai: {
    // provider auto-detects: 'anthropic' when ANTHROPIC_API_KEY is set,
    // else 'claude-cli' (a locally authenticated Claude Code install).
    model: 'claude-opus-4-8',
    // or bring your own: respond: async ({ system, messages }) => '...'
  },
})

await bridge.start()
// bridge.setSystemPrompt('...'), bridge.client (discord.js Client), bridge.stop()

Discord bot setup

1. Create a bot at https://discord.com/developers/applications, enable the Message Content intent.
2. Invite it with permissions: View Channels, Manage Channels (for #web-intake auto-create), Send Messages, Create Public Threads, Send Messages in Threads, Attach Files, Read Message History.
3. Put the token in WEB_DISCORD_BOT_TOKEN.

The prompt setting

--prompt-file prompt.md (or systemPrompt) is where you tell the bot how to behave and give it knowledge — products, policies, tone. The file is hot-reloaded on change, and bridge.setSystemPrompt() updates it at runtime.

Wire protocol (for custom clients)

Connect to ws(s)://host:port/ws?session=<8-64 char id>.

Client → server: {type:'message', text} · {type:'file', name, mime, data(base64), text?} Server → client: {type:'ready', history, aiPaused} · {type:'message', role:'user'|'assistant'|'agent', text, attachments, ts, id, authorName?} · {type:'typing', on} · {type:'status', aiPaused} · {type:'error', message}

License

MIT