Add Telegram Channel

This skill adds Telegram support to NanoClaw using the skills engine for deterministic code changes, then walks through interactive setup.

Phase 1: Pre-flight

Check if already applied

Read .nanoclaw/state.yaml. If telegram is in applied_skills, skip to Phase 3 (Setup). The code changes are already in place.

Ask the user

1. Mode: Replace WhatsApp or add alongside it?

   • Replace → will set TELEGRAM_ONLY=true
   • Alongside → both channels active (default)

2. Do they already have a bot token? If yes, collect it now. If no, we'll create one in Phase 3.

Phase 2: Apply Code Changes

Run the skills engine to apply this skill's code package. The package files are in this directory alongside this SKILL.md.

Initialize skills system (if needed)

If .nanoclaw/ directory doesn't exist yet:

npx tsx scripts/apply-skill.ts --init

Or call initSkillsSystem() from skills-engine/migrate.ts.

Apply the skill

npx tsx scripts/apply-skill.ts .claude/skills/add-telegram

This deterministically:

• Adds src/channels/telegram.ts (TelegramChannel class implementing Channel interface)
• Adds src/channels/telegram.test.ts (46 unit tests)
• Three-way merges Telegram support into src/index.ts (multi-channel support, findChannel routing)
• Three-way merges Telegram config into src/config.ts (TELEGRAM_BOT_TOKEN, TELEGRAM_ONLY exports)
• Three-way merges updated routing tests into src/routing.test.ts
• Installs the grammy npm dependency
• Updates .env.example with TELEGRAM_BOT_TOKEN and TELEGRAM_ONLY
• Records the application in .nanoclaw/state.yaml

If the apply reports merge conflicts, read the intent files:

• modify/src/index.ts.intent.md — what changed and invariants for index.ts
• modify/src/config.ts.intent.md — what changed for config.ts

Validate code changes

npm test
npm run build

All tests must pass (including the new telegram tests) and build must be clean before proceeding.

Phase 3: Setup

Create Telegram Bot (if needed)

If the user doesn't have a bot token, tell them:

I need you to create a Telegram bot:

1. Open Telegram and search for @BotFather
2. Send /newbot and follow prompts:
   • Bot name: Something friendly (e.g., "Andy Assistant")
   • Bot username: Must end with "bot" (e.g., "andy_ai_bot")
3. Copy the bot token (looks like 123456:ABC-DEF1234ghIkl-zyx57W2v1u123ew11)

Wait for the user to provide the token.

Configure environment

Add to .env:

TELEGRAM_BOT_TOKEN=<their-token>

If they chose to replace WhatsApp:

TELEGRAM_ONLY=true

Sync to container environment:

mkdir -p data/env && cp .env data/env/env

The container reads environment from data/env/env, not .env directly.

Disable Group Privacy (for group chats)

Tell the user:

Important for group chats: By default, Telegram bots only see @mentions and commands in groups. To let the bot see all messages:

1. Open Telegram and search for @BotFather
2. Send /mybots and select your bot
3. Go to Bot Settings > Group Privacy > Turn off

This is optional if you only want trigger-based responses via @mentioning the bot.

Build and restart

npm run build
launchctl kickstart -k gui/$(id -u)/com.nanoclaw

Phase 4: Registration

Get Chat ID

Tell the user:

1. Open your bot in Telegram (search for its username)
2. Send /chatid — it will reply with the chat ID
3. For groups: add the bot to the group first, then send /chatid in the group

Wait for the user to provide the chat ID (format: tg:123456789 or tg:-1001234567890).

Register the chat

Use the IPC register flow or register directly. The chat ID, name, and folder name are needed.

For a main chat (responds to all messages, uses the main folder):

registerGroup("tg:<chat-id>", {
  name: "<chat-name>",
  folder: "main",
  trigger: `@${ASSISTANT_NAME}`,
  added_at: new Date().toISOString(),
  requiresTrigger: false,
});

For additional chats (trigger-only):

registerGroup("tg:<chat-id>", {
  name: "<chat-name>",
  folder: "<folder-name>",
  trigger: `@${ASSISTANT_NAME}`,
  added_at: new Date().toISOString(),
  requiresTrigger: true,
});

Phase 5: Verify

Test the connection

Tell the user:

Send a message to your registered Telegram chat:

• For main chat: Any message works
• For non-main: @Andy hello or @mention the bot

The bot should respond within a few seconds.

Check logs if needed

tail -f logs/nanoclaw.log

Troubleshooting

Bot not responding

1. Check TELEGRAM_BOT_TOKEN is set in .env AND synced to data/env/env
2. Check chat is registered: sqlite3 store/messages.db "SELECT * FROM registered_groups WHERE jid LIKE 'tg:%'"
3. For non-main chats: message must include trigger pattern
4. Service is running: launchctl list | grep nanoclaw

Bot only responds to @mentions in groups

Group Privacy is enabled (default). Fix:

1. @BotFather > /mybots > select bot > Bot Settings > Group Privacy > Turn off
2. Remove and re-add the bot to the group (required for the change to take effect)

Getting chat ID

If /chatid doesn't work:

• Verify token: curl -s "https://api.telegram.org/bot${TELEGRAM_BOT_TOKEN}/getMe"
• Check bot is started: tail -f logs/nanoclaw.log

After Setup

Ask the user:

Would you like to add Agent Swarm support? Each subagent appears as a different bot in the Telegram group. If interested, run /add-telegram-swarm.