Node.js 18+ A Slack workspace where you can create apps Claude API key from console.anthropic.com A server or tunneling tool (ngrok for local dev, or a platform like Railway/Render for production)

How to Use Slack Chrome Extension + (2026)

Q: Step 2: Set Up the Node.js Project

mkdir claude-slack-bot && cd claude-slack-bot npm init -y npm install @slack/bolt @anthropic-ai/sdk dotenv Create .env: SLACK_BOT_TOKEN=xoxb-your-token SLACK_SIGNING_SECRET=your-signing-secret SLACK_APP_TOKEN=xapp-your-app-token ANTHROPIC_API_KEY=your-claude-api-key PORT=3000

Last updated: April 17, 2026

A Slack bot backed by Claude skills gives your team an AI assistant that lives inside their daily workspace. Team members can trigger code reviews with the tdd skill, process documents via pdf, recall project context through supermemory, or get UI feedback from frontend-design. all without leaving Slack. This tutorial covers the full Claude skills with Slack bot integration from app creation to skill invocation.

Architecture Overview

Slack App (Bolt SDK)
 ↓ slash command / mention
Express Server (Node.js)
 ↓ HTTP POST
Anthropic API (Claude)
 ↓ skill-specific system prompt
Slack API (post message)

The bot uses Slack Bolt for Node.js, listens for slash commands or app mentions, routes them to Claude with the appropriate skill system prompt, and posts the response back.

Prerequisites

Node.js 18+
A Slack workspace where you can create apps
Claude API key from console.anthropic.com
A server or tunneling tool (ngrok for local dev, or a platform like Railway/Render for production)

Step 1: Create the Slack App

Go to api.slack.com/apps and click Create New App
Choose From scratch, name it “Claude Skills Bot”, select your workspace
Under OAuth & Permissions, add Bot Token Scopes:
- app_mentions:read
- chat:write
- commands
- files:read
Under Slash Commands, create /claude with:
- Request URL: https://your-server.com/slack/events
- Short description: Invoke Claude skills
- Usage hint: [skill] [prompt]
Enable Event Subscriptions and subscribe to app_mention
Install the app to your workspace and note:
- Bot User OAuth Token (xoxb-...)
- Signing Secret
- App-Level Token (for Socket Mode)

Step 2: Set Up the Node.js Project

mkdir claude-slack-bot && cd claude-slack-bot
npm init -y
npm install @slack/bolt @anthropic-ai/sdk dotenv

Create .env:

SLACK_BOT_TOKEN=xoxb-your-token
SLACK_SIGNING_SECRET=your-signing-secret
SLACK_APP_TOKEN=xapp-your-app-token
ANTHROPIC_API_KEY=your-claude-api-key
PORT=3000

Step 3: Create the Bot Server

Create index.js:

require('dotenv').config();
const { App } = require('@slack/bolt');
const Anthropic = require('@anthropic-ai/sdk');
const app = new App({
 token: process.env.SLACK_BOT_TOKEN,
 signingSecret: process.env.SLACK_SIGNING_SECRET,
 socketMode: true,
 appToken: process.env.SLACK_APP_TOKEN,
});
const claude = new Anthropic({
 apiKey: process.env.ANTHROPIC_API_KEY,
});
// Skill system prompts
const SKILLS = {
 tdd: `You are the TDD skill for Claude Code. Review code for test coverage gaps, 
identify untested paths, and suggest concrete unit tests. Be specific and actionable.`,
 
 pdf: `You are the PDF processing skill for Claude Code. Extract key information, 
summarize content, identify action items, and return structured output.`,
 
 'frontend-design': `You are the frontend-design skill for Claude Code. Review UI 
components, copy, and accessibility. Flag WCAG violations and suggest improvements.`,
 
 supermemory: `You are the supermemory skill for Claude Code. Help the user store, 
recall, and organize project context and information across sessions.`,
 
 default: `You are Claude Code, an expert software development assistant. 
Help with code, architecture, debugging, and technical questions.`,
};
async function callClaude(skill, prompt) {
 const systemPrompt = SKILLS[skill] || SKILLS.default;
 
 const message = await claude.messages.create({
 model: 'claude-opus-4-6',
 max_tokens: 1024,
 system: systemPrompt,
 messages: [{ role: 'user', content: prompt }],
 });
 
 return message.content[0].text;
}
// Handle /claude slash command: /claude tdd <code to review>
app.command('/claude', async ({ command, ack, respond }) => {
 await ack();
 
 const parts = command.text.trim().split(' ');
 const skill = SKILLS[parts[0]] ? parts[0] : 'default';
 const prompt = skill !== 'default' ? parts.slice(1).join(' ') : command.text;
 
 if (!prompt) {
 await respond('Usage: `/claude [skill] [your prompt]`\nSkills: tdd, pdf, frontend-design, supermemory');
 return;
 }
 
 await respond({ text: '_Claude is thinking..._', response_type: 'ephemeral' });
 
 try {
 const response = await callClaude(skill, prompt);
 await respond({
 text: `*Claude (${skill} skill):*\n${response}`,
 response_type: 'in_channel',
 });
 } catch (err) {
 await respond(`Error calling Claude: ${err.message}`);
 }
});
// Handle @mentions: @Claude-Skills-Bot tdd review this function...
app.event('app_mention', async ({ event, say }) => {
 const text = event.text.replace(/<@[A-Z0-9]+>/, '').trim();
 const parts = text.split(' ');
 const skill = SKILLS[parts[0]] ? parts[0] : 'default';
 const prompt = skill !== 'default' ? parts.slice(1).join(' ') : text;
 
 if (!prompt) {
 await say('Mention me with a skill and prompt. Example: `@Claude-Bot tdd review this code`');
 return;
 }
 
 try {
 const response = await callClaude(skill, prompt);
 await say({
 thread_ts: event.ts,
 text: `*Claude (${skill} skill):*\n${response}`,
 });
 } catch (err) {
 await say({ thread_ts: event.ts, text: `Error: ${err.message}` });
 }
});
(async () => {
 await app.start(process.env.PORT || 3000);
 console.log('Claude Skills Slack bot running');
})();

Step 4: Handle File Uploads for PDF Skill

When users share files in Slack and mention the bot, fetch the file content before sending to Claude:

app.event('app_mention', async ({ event, say, client }) => {
 let prompt = event.text.replace(/<@[A-Z0-9]+>/, '').trim();
 let fileContent = '';
 
 // Check for attached files
 if (event.files && event.files.length > 0) {
 const file = event.files[0];
 if (file.mimetype === 'text/plain' || file.name.endsWith('.md')) {
 const fileResp = await fetch(file.url_private, {
 headers: { Authorization: `Bearer ${process.env.SLACK_BOT_TOKEN}` },
 });
 fileContent = await fileResp.text();
 prompt = `pdf ${prompt}\n\nFile content:\n${fileContent.slice(0, 6000)}`;
 }
 }
 
 const skill = 'pdf';
 const response = await callClaude(skill, prompt);
 await say({ thread_ts: event.ts, text: response });
});

Step 5: Add Conversation Threading with Supermemory

Use the supermemory skill to give the bot memory across threads:

const threadHistory = new Map(); // In production, use Redis
app.event('app_mention', async ({ event, say }) => {
 const threadKey = event.thread_ts || event.ts;
 const history = threadHistory.get(threadKey) || [];
 
 const userText = event.text.replace(/<@[A-Z0-9]+>/, '').trim();
 history.push({ role: 'user', content: userText });
 
 const message = await claude.messages.create({
 model: 'claude-opus-4-6',
 max_tokens: 1024,
 system: SKILLS.supermemory,
 messages: history.slice(-10), // keep last 10 turns
 });
 
 const reply = message.content[0].text;
 history.push({ role: 'assistant', content: reply });
 threadHistory.set(threadKey, history);
 
 await say({ thread_ts: event.ts, text: reply });
});

Step 6: Deploy to Production

For production, deploy to Railway or Render:

Railway deployment
npm install -g @railway/cli
railway login
railway init
railway add --plugin redis # for thread history
railway up

Set environment variables in the Railway dashboard matching your .env file. Railway gives you a public URL to use as the Slack Request URL.

Step 7: Format Responses for Slack

Claude’s markdown doesn’t map perfectly to Slack’s mrkdwn format. Add a formatting helper:

function toSlackMarkdown(text) {
 return text
 .replace(/\*\*(.*?)\*\*/g, '*$1*') // bold
 .replace(/`{3}(\w+)?\n?([\s\S]*?)`{3}/g, '```$2```') // code blocks
 .replace(/^#{1,3} (.+)$/gm, '*$1*'); // headings to bold
}

Conclusion

This Claude skills with Slack bot integration tutorial covers the full stack from app creation to multi-skill routing and production deployment. The pattern of mapping slash command arguments to skill system prompts is flexible. add new skills by adding entries to the SKILLS object. With supermemory thread history and pdf file handling, your team gets a genuinely useful AI assistant living inside Slack.

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