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Slack Integration

The Engineering AI Agent integrates with Slack to enable communication between users and the AI agents, supporting natural language interactions and task management.

Overview​

The Slack integration serves as a primary communication channel for users to:

  • Assign tasks to AI agents
  • Receive status updates and notifications
  • Ask questions and get assistance
  • Collaborate with AI agents on engineering tasks

Setup Instructions​

Prerequisites​

  • Admin access to a Slack workspace
  • Slack Bot token with appropriate permissions

Creating a Slack App​

  1. Go to Slack API Apps page
  2. Click "Create New App"
  3. Choose "From scratch"
  4. Name your app "Engineering AI Agent" and select your workspace
  5. Click "Create App"

Bot Configuration​

  1. In the left sidebar, go to "OAuth & Permissions"

  2. Scroll down to "Bot Token Scopes" and add the following permissions:

    • channels:history
    • channels:read
    • chat:write
    • reactions:read
    • reactions:write
    • users:read

  3. Scroll up and click "Install to Workspace"

  4. Copy the "Bot User OAuth Token" (starts with xoxb-)

Installation​

  1. Add the Slack token to your .env file:
SLACK_API_TOKEN=xoxb-your-token-here
  1. Configure the Slack integration in your config.yaml:
integrations:
  slack:
    enabled: true
    workspace_id: "your_workspace_id"
    channels:
      - "#engineering"
      - "#project-discussion"
    bot_name: "engineering-agent"
    notify_on_events:
      - "task_assigned"
      - "pr_created"
      - "build_failed"

Usage​

Basic Commands​

Users can interact with the agent using mentions:

@engineering-agent hello

Role-Specific Commands​

To direct a command to a specific role:

@engineering-agent rd implement feature XYZ from ticket PROJ-123
@engineering-agent pm analyze requirement "User authentication system"

Command Structure​

Commands generally follow this structure:

@engineering-agent [role] [action] [parameters]

Common actions include:

  • help: Show available commands
  • status: Check status of tasks
  • assign: Assign a task
  • analyze: Analyze requirements or issues
  • implement: Begin implementation of a feature

Emoji Reactions​

Users can guide agent actions by adding emoji reactions to messages:

  • ✅: Approve a suggestion or action
  • ❌: Reject a suggestion or action
  • 🔄: Request more information or alternatives
  • 📝: Request the agent to document the current conversation or decision

Troubleshooting​

Common Issues​

  1. Bot not responding:

    • Ensure the bot is invited to the channel
    • Verify the Slack token is correctly configured
    • Check the agent logs for connection errors

  2. Missing permissions:

    • Review the bot scopes and ensure all required permissions are granted
    • Reinstall the app to the workspace if you've added permissions

  3. Rate limiting:

    • The Slack API has rate limits; check the agent logs for rate limit errors
    • Consider implementing rate limiting or batching for frequent operations

Getting Help​

If you encounter issues with the Slack integration, check:

  • Application logs for error messages
  • Slack API documentation for up-to-date API changes
  • GitHub issues for known problems and solutions