Telegram Bot

IO includes a Telegram bot interface powered by grammY, giving you mobile access to your AI assistant.

Setup

1. Create a Bot with BotFather

1. Open Telegram and search for @BotFather
2. Send /newbot
3. Choose a display name (e.g., "IO Assistant")
4. Choose a username (must end in bot, e.g., io_assistant_bot)
5. BotFather will give you a bot token — save this

2. Get Your Telegram User ID

IO authorizes users by their numeric Telegram user ID, not by username.

To find your user ID, message @userinfobot on Telegram — it will reply with your numeric ID (e.g., 123456789).

3. Configure IO

The easiest way to configure Telegram is through the setup wizard:

io setup

The wizard will prompt you for your bot token, user ID, and whether to enable the Telegram interface.

Alternatively, edit ~/.io/config.json directly:

{
  "telegramBotToken": "123456:ABC-DEF1234ghIkl-zyx57W2v1u123ew11",
  "authorizedUserId": 123456789,
  "telegramEnabled": true
}

WARNING

Keep your bot token secret. If compromised, use /revoke with BotFather to generate a new one.

4. Restart IO

Restart the daemon so it picks up the new configuration. You should see in the logs:

[io] Telegram bot polling started

Usage

Send any message to your bot and the orchestrator will handle it. While processing, the bot shows a typing indicator and posts a placeholder message (…) that is progressively edited with the streaming response.

Streaming Responses

As the orchestrator generates a response, the bot edits its placeholder message in real time so you can read the reply as it arrives. Edits are debounced (500 ms) to stay within Telegram's rate limits.

Long Responses

Telegram has a 4096-character message limit. IO automatically splits long messages into multiple chunks when sending proactive notifications.

Security

Only the single user ID set in authorizedUserId can interact with the bot. Messages from any other user are silently ignored — no error message is sent back, and no processing occurs.

{
  "authorizedUserId": 123456789
}

Because authorization is by numeric ID rather than username, it cannot be spoofed by changing a Telegram display name.

Without Telegram

If telegramEnabled is false or telegramBotToken is not set in ~/.io/config.json, IO starts normally without the Telegram interface. No errors are produced — Telegram is fully optional.